agm 2013 vote pope, page-91

Some years back, NDO indicated they would be looking at retaining a 10% working interest in SC58.

There's no way PNOC-EC can retain a 50% WI in SC58, and they'd be looking for a farmout as well.

A farmout scenario could see a major with 65 to 70%, PNOC with 20 to 25% (or less), and NDO with 10%. NDO would also require the major to 100% fund the first well...only way NDO could stay in SC58.

To clarify target depths in SC63, a number of prospective targets identified range in depth from 70m to 500m, around 114m being the limit for the average JU.

The SC63 target for years was a re-drill of the Aboabo structure (Aboabo A-x1 gas discovery made by Phillips in 1980, JU WD). Problem with this was that it was a dry gas discovery.
I think NDO may've had ideas that they could somehow get this gas into the Malampaya production system (not big enough for stand alone). Anyway, re-drilling a known discovery was not really going to add anything to the portfolio.
IMO, what they needed to do was come up with another discovery in the vicinity, together they may have a stand alone proposition.

The change of target in SC63 to Apribada provided this chance of a 2nd discovery, and to boot, it is considered it may contain wet gas, ie, condensate oil present in the gas.
Condensate can be extracted readily with a FPU, and is a very marketable product.

I'd like to see them keep SC63 if possible. Remember, they'd already made a commitment to drill here by purchasing some long lead items (wellhead, casing, etc) which are still sitting in the yard (unless they've sold them).

The sticking point came with the JU mob costs for a one-off drill...was going to cost them around $6M more than a shared or subcontracted rig. On this basis, the DOE granted them a 12 mth extension to the drilling phase.

The SC63 south western border shares a boundary line with OEL's SC55 (BHPP now operator). The Aboabo and Apribada structures are not very far from this common border, and there are many other structures here all quite close together.