NEWS - Oil, Gas Gushing out of MYAN

[Rangoonp@xxxxxxx]

Subject: NEWS - Oil, Gas Gushing out of MYANMAR'S Letpando Field

Oil, Gas Gushing out of MYANMAR'S Letpando Field

               Xinhua
               28-JUL-99

               YANGON (July 29) XINHUA - Crude oil and natural gas are
               gushing again out of a well in Letpando oil and natural
gas
               field in Myanmar's central Magway division after the well
had
               been closed for nearly 23 years for low production in
1976. 

               The well No.1-A of the onshore Letpando oil and natural
gas
               field in the division's Pauk township is estimated to
have
               been producing between 200 and 300 barrels of crude oil
               and between 56,634 and 84,951 cubic meters of natural gas
               per day since July 21 this year, official newspaper The
New
               Light of Myanmar reported Thursday. 

               The drilling of the well started in May 1974 and was then
               producing 845 barrels of crude oil and 32,791 cubic
meters
               of natural gas per day. 

               Test production from the well began in February 1976 and
               was closed later in the same year due to low production. 

               Of the test wells drilled up to March this year in the
Letpando
               oil and natural gas field, 12 are producing 651 barrels
of
               crude oil and 40,918 cubic meters of natural gas daily. 

               There are about 17 onshore and two outstanding offshore
oil
               and natural gas fields in Myanmar. The two offshore
fields
               are the Yadana in the country's gulf of Mottma and the
               Yedagun off the Tanintharyi coast. 

               According to official statistics, Myanmar produced 3.378
               million barrels of crude oil in 1998-99 which ended in
March,
               a reduction of 252,000 barrels from 1997-98 while the
output
               of natural gas was 1.724 billion cubic meters, a drop of
74
               million cubic meters compared with 1997-98. 

               To develop the crude oil and natural gas industry,
Myanmar
               has, since late 1988, been absorbing foreign investments
for
               undertaking both offshore and onshore oil and gas
               exploration and production projects. 


               By the end of April this year, foreign investment in the
oil and
               gas sector reached 2.3 billion U.S. dollars in 46
projects. 

               Meanwhile, Myanmar has to import 280,000-300,000 tons of
               crude oil and 100,000-150,000 tons of diesel oil every
year
               as local production cannot meet domestic demand.