SK Earthon, the energy exploration and production arm of SK Innovation (096770.KS), has begun its first oil production at Vietnam's Block 15-1/05 and found an additional oil-bearing layer at a nearby structure, accelerating its expansion in Vietnam and broadening its overseas energy supply base. The company said the milestone also carries weight for energy security at a time when geopolitical tensions are deepening uncertainty in global energy supply chains.
SK Earthon said on the 13th that it had successfully started first oil production at the Golden Camel structure in Block 15-1/05 in Vietnam. The achievement comes about two years after full-scale development began in 2024. Working with U.S.-based Murphy Oil, the block's operator, SK Earthon completed production preparations early and began pumping its first crude in late September, ahead of the original schedule.
The Golden Camel structure holds estimated recoverable resources of about 60 million barrels, and crude is now being extracted steadily through the first production well. Murphy, the operator, plans to drill additional production wells in stages to raise output. Once development is complete, daily crude production for the block as a whole is estimated to rise to as much as 25,000 barrels.
Alongside the start of production came news of another oil discovery. SK Earthon and Murphy drilled the North White Camel exploration well near the Golden Camel structure to a depth of about 3,800 meters and confirmed an oil-bearing layer 56 meters thick. The partners had already discovered oil and completed a successful test production at the Red Camel structure within Block 15-1/05 in May last year. Together with Murphy and Vietnam's state-run PetroVietnam Exploration Production Corp. (PVEP), they plan to develop the three structures in an integrated manner to maximize production efficiency.
SK Earthon holds a 25% stake in Block 15-1/05, while Murphy Oil and PVEP hold 40% and 35%, respectively.
With production now underway, SK Earthon has expanded its core production base in Vietnam's Cuu Long Basin, adding to Block 15-1, which began operating in 2003. The company plans to grow the business through a clustering strategy that lifts development efficiency by sharing technology and experience across adjacent blocks.
"The first oil from the Golden Camel structure is the fruit of the clustering strategy we have pursued in Vietnam," an SK Earthon official said. "We will expand the business through integrated development of adjacent structures and firmly establish our position in Southeast Asia's resource development market."
Since entering resource development in 1983, the SK Innovation group has taken part in 13 blocks and five gas fields across 11 countries, producing an average of 58,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day on an SK equity basis.