Malaysia's national upstream company Petronas Carigali is advancing its exploration strategy by identifying new drilling targets offshore Peninsular Malaysia, with potential activity commencing as early as 2026.

Upcoming Geohazards Survey

In preparation for this exploration, the operator is set to begin a marine geohazards survey over four specific prospects located in the South China Sea off the coast of Terengganu. The survey will be conducted by the Malaysian-flagged vessel MW Cassandra No 5 and is scheduled for completion on 19 December.

Identified Exploration Prospects

The four proposed wildcat drilling locations are named Geranium-1, Balsam-1, Palas Deep, and Guntong Deep, as revealed by the Malaysia Marine Department.

Recent Production and Partnership Developments

In a related development, Petronas Carigali and its equal partner ExxonMobil began production at the Bindu field in June. This field is tied back to the existing Guntong E production hub. This follows ExxonMobil's transfer of operatorship for two Malaysian offshore production sharing contracts to the national company last year.

Potential Joint Venture Assets

While not officially confirmed by the companies, analysis from consultant Rystad Energy suggests that three of Petronas Carigali's assets in Peninsular Malaysia—the Gas PSC, the 2008 PSC, and the Sepat oil block—could be contributed to a new Indonesia-Malaysia upstream joint venture currently being established with Eni.

This material is an AI-assisted summary based on publicly available sources and may contain inaccuracies. For the original and full details, please refer to the source link. Based on materials by Amanda Battersby. All rights to the original text and images remain with their respective rights holders.