Santos Updates on Winchester Prospect Drilling (Australia)

Santos Offshore Pty Ltd, the Operator of the Winchester-1 exploration well being drilled in the Dampier Sub-basin permit WA-323-P , offshore Australia, has announced that at 06:00 hours (WST) on Tuesday, 14 May 2013, the well was at a depth of 2875m MDRT (measured depth below rotary table) and is approaching the intermediate section total depth.

 Operations over the last week has seen the the 17%” hole drilled from 2164m to the current depth, which included commencing drilling the deviated section of the well.

Planned operations over the coming week are to complete the intermediate section to the next casing point at approximately 2930m MDRT, run and cement in the 14″ casing and then commence drilling the 12%” hole.

Winchester-1 is to be a deviated well and is being drilled by the Ensco-109 jack-up rig. The well is being drilled in approximately 75m of water and to a total depth (TD) of 4803m MDRT. It is scheduled to take approximately 80 days from the 7 April spud date to reach TD. Winchester-1 is targeting the hydrocarbon potential of Triassic aged reservoirs mapped within a four- way dip closed anticline structural closure. The well has been designed, inter alia, to target at least four potential reservoir zones, each associated with high amplitude seismic events. Winchester-1 is located on the northeast trending Parker Terrace, representing a structural high separated from the Rankin Trend to the east.

The participants in the WA-323-P and WA-363-P permits and their Joint Venture are: Santos Offshore Pty Ltd 75% (Subsidiary of SANTOS Limned (ASX Codo: STO) Winchester Resources NL (Subsidiary of Octanex N.L. (ASX Code: OXX) 25%