20th Dec 2005 12:12
BHP Billiton PLC20 December 2005 Release Time IMMEDIATEDate 20 December 2005Number 52/05 BHP BILLITON ANNOUNCES KNOTTY HEAD DISCOVERY IN GULF OF MEXICO BHP Billiton today announced a discovery at the Knotty Head exploration welllocated in Green Canyon Block 512, approximately 170 miles southeast of NewOrleans in the Gulf of Mexico. Knotty Head is believed to be the deepest hydrocarbon discovery to date in theGulf of Mexico, located in water depths of approximately 3,500 feet, with theinitial wellbore drilled to total depth of more than 34,000 feet. The wellencountered more than 500 feet of net oil pay. "This is a very encouraging result," said BHP Billiton Group President Energy,Philip Aiken. "We will be working with our partners to determine next steps,including the drilling of a sidetrack from this wellbore to further delineatethe lateral extent of the oil sands we've found thus far." BHP Billiton holds a 25 percent interest in Knotty Head. Other partners includeChevron, Anadarko Petroleum Corporation and Nexen Petroleum USA Inc., a whollyowned subsidiary of Nexen Inc. Each partner holds a 25 percent interest in theblock. Chevron is the operator of the well, which is being drilled with theTransocean drillship Discoverer Spirit and Nexen is the designated operator ofthe prospect. BHP Billiton has a significant deepwater position in the Gulf of Mexico withinterests in nearly 450 lease blocks. Assets in the Gulf of Mexico include MadDog, which commenced production earlier this year, and the Atlantis and Neptunefields, which are currently in development. The company also has deepwaterdiscoveries under appraisal at Cascade, Chinook and Shenzi. Further information on BHP Billiton can be found on our Internet site: http://www.bhpbilliton.com Australia United KingdomJane Belcher, Investor Relations Mark Lidiard, Investor & Media RelationsTel: +61 3 9609 3952 Mobile: +61 417 031 653 Tel: +44 20 7802 4156 Mobile: +44 7769 934 942email: [email protected] email: [email protected] Samantha Evans, Media Relations Ariane Gentil, Media RelationsTel: +61 3 9609 2898 Mobile: +61 400 693 915 Tel: +44 20 7802 4177 Mobile: +44 78 81 51 8715email: [email protected] email: [email protected] United States South AfricaTracey Whitehead, Investor & Media Relations Alison Gilbert, Investor RelationsTel: US +1 713 599 6100 or UK +44 20 7802 4031 Tel: SA +27 11 376 2121 or UK +44 20 7802 4183Mobile: +44 7917 648 093 email: [email protected]: [email protected] This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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