ExxonMobile to conclude drilling 4th well in Sulu Sea

ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Philippines B.V. will conclude this week the drilling of the fourth exploratory well Babandil-1 in offshore South Sulu Sea, official sources said Tuesday. The semi-submersible drill rig West Aquarius, will go into the "abandonment" phase of Babendil-1. West Aquarius will then sail to China between Oct. 6 and Oct. 8 escorted by the m/v Lim Tide, according to a Philippine Coast Guard report on ship movements. According to a Department of Energy official who spoke on condition of anonymity, ExxonMobile will do a “post-well evaluation" the results of which would dictate if the company should go for a fifth exploratory well. Company officials said, however, that ExxonMobile might spend up to $500 million to bring its South Sulu Sea operations to the production stage for oil and gas. The company so far spent around $400 million to drill the four wells — Babendil-1, Palendag-1-A, Palendag-1 and Dabakan-1, according to the Energy Department. — VS, GMANews.TV