Murphy Oil spuds Lac Da Trang well offshore Vietnam

Murphy Oil has spudded the Lac Da Trang North-1X well off southern Vietnam, targeting 40 million to 80 million barrels of recoverable resources.

By OGGN Staff·12 Aug 2026, 08:00·1 min read

Drilling rig silhouettes at sunset, Niger Delta

Example of an onshore drilling rig in the Niger Delta, not the site in this story. Photo: Julius A OBARO, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Murphy Oil Corporation has spudded the Lac Da Trang North-1X exploration well in Block 15-1/05, offshore southern Vietnam, targeting between 40 million and 80 million barrels of recoverable resources in the Cuu Long Basin.

Murphy operates the block with a 40% interest. Partners are PetroVietnam Exploration Production, which holds 35%, and SK Earthon, which holds 25%.

A possible tieback

A commercial discovery at Lac Da Trang could be developed as a tieback to Murphy's nearby Lac Da Vang project, also in Block 15-1/05. A tieback connects new wells to a nearby project's existing infrastructure rather than building a standalone development, which can lower costs and shorten the time to first production. Lac Da Vang itself remains on track for first oil in the fourth quarter of 2026.

Part of a wider push

The new well follows a string of exploration and appraisal work by Murphy in the block, including the Lac Da Hong discovery announced in 2025. The company is also pursuing other exploration opportunities in Vietnam, alongside its upstream programs in the US Gulf and Cote d'Ivoire.

Why it matters

If Lac Da Trang proves commercial, a tieback to Lac Da Vang would let Murphy skip a standalone development and bring the resource on faster and cheaper, which matters given the well already carries a wide 40 million to 80 million barrel range. Lac Da Vang's move toward fourth-quarter 2026 first oil gives Murphy a live project nearby to tie into.

What's next. Well results will show whether Murphy has another discovery in Block 15-1/05, following Lac Da Vang and the 2025 Lac Da Hong find. Lac Da Vang's progress toward fourth-quarter 2026 first oil is the near-term milestone to watch.

Sources

PrimaryDrilling Contractor · drillingcontractor.org

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Murphy Oil spuds Lac Da Trang well offshore Vietnam

A possible tieback

Part of a wider push

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