Soco gets Vietnamese approval for TCT

Oil group Soco's Te Giac Trang Field, offshore Vietnam, has been given the go-ahead by Vietnamese government with first oil targeted for mid-2011.Tenders for a number of long lead items are already under evaluation, Soco said, while a contract for the floating, production, storage and offloading vessel is currently being finalised. To date, seven exploration/appraisal wells have been drilled in the TGT Field, with an average oil and gas flow of approximately 11,300 barrels of oil equivalent per day from each well.Soco holds its interests in Vietnam, all in the Cuu Long Basin offshore, through its 80% owned subsidiary Soco Vietnam Ltd and through its 100% ownership of OPECO, Inc.The TCT field is located in Block 16-1, which is operated by the Hoang Long Joint Operating Company. Soco Vietnam holds a 28.5% working interest while OPECO, Inc. holds a 2% interest.Soco added that its SOCO Viodo 4 appraisal well spudded on 17 September in the Marine XI Block, located in the Congo Basin, offshore the Republic of Congo.