Eight-well drilling program ups oil output at Southeast Asian offshore field

June 19, 2026, by Melisa Cavcic

Canada-based Valeura Energy, an oil and gas company, has wrapped up its multi-well drilling campaign, which led to an oil production boost at an oil field off the coast of Thailand, Southeast Asia.

Valeura Energy has confirmed the completion of an eight-well drilling campaign on its Nong Yao field at block G11/48, where the company holds a 90% operated working interest in the Gulf of Thailand. The drilling program, which includes the firm’s first-ever multi-lateral development well, encompassed one appraisal well that encountered its target as intended, and will give rise to future development drilling at the Nong Yao A platform.

The remaining seven wells were drilled as horizontal development wells from both the Nong Yao A and B platforms, encountering their targets and being brought online as producers. Among the development wells was NYA-42ST1H, said to have set a new Gulf of Thailand record for the longest horizontal lateral ever drilled, measuring 4,960.

As a result of the drilling program and a well workover campaign conducted concurrently on the Nong Yao B and C platforms to optimise well performance, the aggregate oil production volumes from the Nong Yao field have increased to rates of approximately 10,500 bbls/d over seven days ending June 16, 2026, compared to production rates averaging 8,870 bbls/d for the seven days ending April 4, 2026.

Dr. Sean Guest, Valeura’s President and CEO, commented: “We continue to access new oil reservoirs with ongoing drilling, and have again increased production from the Nong Yao field, our largest producing asset.

“Moreover, in this campaign, our team has demonstrated the potential for multi-lateral drilling in the Gulf of Thailand as a way to enhance the efficiency of what is already a world-class drilling and completions organisation. This continues our long tradition of embracing new technology, and sets the stage to deploy this approach broadly across our portfolio.”

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Exploration & Production

Regarding Valeura’s first-ever multi-lateral well, the company constructed within the wellbore NYB-02ST1 a complex junction point from which two separate horizontal production legs were drilled in turn, each targeting a different reservoir interval and were recorded as two separate development wells.

The firm claims that this was the first multi-lateral with such level of complexity ever attempted in Thailand. The two lateral development intervals are now delivering oil production from two separate development targets, while occupying only one well slot on the wellhead facility.

The multi-lateral approach fits well with Valeura’s objective to maximise the production potential of its facilities. Since the company sees potential for multi-lateral drilling across its portfolio, it is evaluating its forward drilling schedule to identify suitable candidates on its other Gulf of Thailand fields.

These candidates may lend themselves to wells with two or more separate lateral production legs. Valeura’s contracted drilling rig has now been mobilised to the Jasmine field in block B5/27, where the firm plans to conduct a five-well drilling program.

This multi-well program comprises three single-bore development wells and a two-wellbore multi-lateral development well. Borr Drilling’s 2013-built Mist jack-up rig is on hire with Valeura until August 2026 for drilling activities in Thailand.