Hibiscus taps Tanjung for work on Vietnam-Malaysia shared block

Tanjung Offshore Services, a subsidiary of Malaysia’s T7 Global, has won a contract with Hibiscus Oil & Gas Malaysia, an affiliate of compatriot Hibiscus Petroleum, for the provision of maintenance, construction, and modification (MCM) services at a block within the overlapping territorial waters between Malaysia and Vietnam.

The block in question is part of the PM3 commercial arrangement area (CAA), which is a production-sharing contract (PSC) between Malaysia and Vietnam. Tanjung’s assignment is set to last six months from December 19, 2024, with a six-month extension option.

The block’s previous operator Repsol agreed to sell its 35% stake to Hibiscus in 2021. PetroVietnam and Petronas Carigali are the remaining partners in the PSC holding producing fields Bunga Orkid, Bunga Pakma, Bunga Raya, Bunga Seroja, Bunga Kekwa, Bunga Tulip, Bunga Lavatera, and Bunga Aster.

In early August 2024, PV Drilling’s jack-up rig PV Drilling III completed the 14-well drilling campaign for Hibiscus Malaysia in one of the block’s fields, Bunga Orkid. Starting at the end of October 2021, the campaign lasted for 860 days, facing several delays due to COVID-19.

The drilling of the Bunga Aster-1X (BA-1X) exploration well by the same jack-up rig is said to have contributed to the increase in reserves and crude oil production in the Bunga Orkid Delta field. Put into operation in May 2024, the well initially produced 2,100 barrels per day, as reported by PetroVietnam.

The BOC-28 well, drilled as part of the Bunga Orkid-C field development project in July 2024, set what PetroVietnam says is a record for the longest well drilled in Malaysia – 6,970 meters.

After demobilization from the Bunga Orkid C wellhead platform, PV Drilling III was moved to the waters off Kinabalu, Sabah State, Malaysia, where it is set to drill 11 development wells at the South Furious field (SF30) for SEA Hibiscus, another subsidiary of Hibiscus Petroleum. The SF30 campaign is expected to last until February 2025. 

The 2009-built PV Drilling III is a KFELS MOD V B class jack-up capable of operating in water depths up to 400 feet, or approximately 120 meters. Its maximum drill depth is 30,000 feet or around 9,100 meters.

Earlier this week, Tanjung won a contract for the provision of MCM services with Carigali Hess. Starting on January 15, 2025, the contract is set to last three years, with a two-year extension option.