Oil exploration firm sells stake in Cadlao oilfield

MANILA, Philippines - Listed Oriental Petroleum and Minerals Corp. has sold its stake in the Cadlao oil field in Palawan due to unanticipated expenses that it could not carry out. In a disclosure to the stock exchange Wednesday, the oil explorer said it had sold its 55.05% stake in the oil field in El Nido, Palawan to Blade Petroleum Philippines Ltd. It said it could not sustain the development of the field anymore since it would cost $100-$200 million. The contract for the service area is expcted to expire in February. A company official said the offer of Blade Petroleum had come at the right time. "It is a good offer, and [Oriental Petroleum] will continue to have a share in the revenues of production," the official said. Also Wednesday, the operator of the Lumba Lumba 1 well in the Sulu Sea has abandoned the original well due to mechanical problems, Philodrill Corp. told the exchange. An official of Philodrill, which owns 3.39% of the project, said the operator had just moved away from the original well and was continuing the drilling. Operator Tap Oil is drilling a total depth of 3,000 meters below the sea in a water depth of 1,100 meters within 20 days. — Ava Kashima K. Austria, BusinessWorld