Talisman starts oil output from south-east Asian field

Talisman Energy, a Canadian explorer with reserves in south-east Asia, North America and the North Sea, began oil production from a field off Malaysia and Vietnam that may more than double output from the region.
Oil is flowing from 5 wells in the Northern Fields offshore project, the company's spokesman David Mann said.

Talisman plans to drill 16 wells in Northern Fields this year and 13 more in 2010 and expects output of oil and natural gas to reach the equivalent of 40,000 to 50,000 barrels of oil a day by early next year.
"South-east Asia continues to be a key area of opportunity and growth for Talisman," CEO John Manzoni said. "We have doubled our production in Asia over the past five years and are positioned to grow at 10 % annually over the next few years."

Talisman, which began producing gas from Northern Fields in July, said it produced an average of 31,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day in Malaysia-Vietnam last year. Oil from the project is pumped into floating storage for transfer to tankers, Talisman said. Its subsidiaries have a 41.44 % stake in the project and operate the field. Malaysia's Petronas Carigali holds 46.06 % and PetroVietnam Exploration Production Corp. owns 12.5 %.
Gas from Northern Fields is transported by pipeline to Malaysia and Vietnam by the Talisman-operated Southern Fields development.