re: hdr - not eritrea! wpl!!! DJ INTERVIEW: Woodside Warns of...

re: hdr - not eritrea! wpl!!! DJ INTERVIEW: Woodside Warns of Dry Hole Risk In Mauritania

By Stephen Bell
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

SYDNEY (Dow Jones)--Australia's Woodside Petroleum Ltd. (WPL.AU) on Wednesday
warned of the risk of a "dry hole" as it prepares to kick off its US$100
million-plus Mauritania exploration program over the next few days.
Don Voelte, Woodside's chief executive, told Dow Jones Newswires that the first
exploration well in the program will test the Dorade prospect, to the south of
the existing Chinguetti and Tiof discoveries offshore Mauritania.
"We are highlighting that Dorade is a very high-risk well ... and we think that
it has a strong possibility of being a dry hole," Voelte said in an interview on
the sidelines at the World Energy Congress in Sydney.
"But if it does work it opens up a whole new area," he said.
Two drill ships contracted by Woodside are due to arrive in Mauritania over the
next few days, Voelte said.
"The last time I saw the schedule it was September 9 and September 11 for the two
different ships coming in," he said.
"We have a full complement of people on the ground and have all the supplies and
materials for a 21-well program, plus an option to keep the rigs for longer than
that."


Wednesday 08 September 2004 13:56:47