Oil Search Limited reported Thursday that the Mananda 7 ST1 pilot hole well in Petroleum Prospecting License (PPL) 219 in PNG was at a depth of 7,824 feet (2,385 meters). During the week, attempts to free the drill string were unsuccessful and the well was plugged back. Preparations are now underway to sidetrack the well, kicking off from a depth of 3,202 feet (976 meters).

The pilot hole has achieved its objective of obtaining further structural information regarding the northern extent of the field discovered by Mananda 6. The sidetrack, Mananda 7 ST2, will be drilled as a deviated hole to the east, towards the crest of the Mananda 6 structure. The sidetrack will test the presence of a potential gas cap and is designed to be suspended as a potential future oil producer. Mananda 7 is located in PPL 219 and is targeting the Toro and Digimu sandstones.

The participants in Mananda 7 are:

Oil Search (PNG) Limited - 71.25 percent

Nippon Oil Exploration (Niugini) Limited - 20.00 percent

Merlin Petroleum Company - 8.75 percent

Total - 100 percent

Oil Search reported that at 06:00 hours Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) time Jan. 15, the Taza 2 well was at a depth of 2,529 feet (771 meters) and drilling ahead in a 24 inch hole. Progress for the week was 958 feet (292 meters). Taza 2 is located 6 miles (10 kilometers) north-west of Taza 1 and will appraise the hydrocarbon-bearing intervals discovered by Taza 1 (Dhiban/Jeribe and Euphrates/Kirkuk Formations), as well as explore deeper Tertiary and Cretaceous targets including the Shiranish Formation.

The participants in Taza 2 are:

Oil Search (Iraq) Limited* - 60 percentTotal E&P Kurdistan Region of Iraq (Taza) B.V. - 20 percentKurdistan Regional Government (KRG) - 20 percentTotal - 100 percent

Oil Search’s funding interest is 75 percent, with the KRG’s 20 percent interest carried by Oil Search and Total E&P Kurdistan Region of Iraq (Taza) B.V.