US company strikes oil in Vietnam waters, possible | Political News

A U.S. fossil fuel company, Murphy Oil, launched an estimate of its latest discover off Vietnam’s southern coast, which might turn into ASEAN’s largest oil discovery in 20 years.

According to Nikkei, which cited vitality consultancy Wood Mackenzie, a subsidiary of Murphy’s drilled an appraisal properly in the Hai Su Vang oil discipline, situated in the Cuu Long Basin close to Ho Chi Minh City.

The earlier estimate was 170 to 430 million barrels of oil equal (MMBOE).

“In a predominantly gas-prone area, oil discoveries of this scale are distinctive,” said Angus Rodger, head of Asia-Pacific upstream analysis for Wood Mackenzie. “HSV ranks as the third-largest oil discovery in Southeast Asia since 2000, trailing only Indonesia’s Banyu Urip and Malaysia’s Gumusut. Remarkably, Murphy has made two of the five largest oil finds since 2000 and was involved in the development of a third.”

The up to date midpoint estimate is at the high end of this vary, while the high end of the new vary exceeds 430 MMBOE.

“Additionally, results from the shallow reservoir provide recoverable resource upside not included in the previously communicated range,” Murphy said. The discovery might reverse a development in Vietnam that noticed it transition from a internet crude oil exporter to a internet importer in 2017, as industrialization and elevated refinery capability led to this shift.

Vietnam’s oil output declined from 365,000 barrels per day in 2005 to below 120,000 barrels per day in 2025, according to Wood Mackenzie. The earlier big oil finds in the area have been Banyu Urip in Indonesia in 2001 and Gumusut in Malaysia in 2003.

The discovering comes after the U.S. captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his spouse in a navy operation on Saturday.

On Saturday, Trump said a U.S. navy assault succeeded in capturing the Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his spouse, Cilia Flores. Maduro and Flores are dealing with costs associated to drug-trafficking, as Trump said the U.S. would “run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition” during a Jan. 3 press convention.

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In a latest ballot by Democracy Institute, 41 p.c of Republicans surveyed said Venezuelan oil reserves, the biggest in the world, have been the real motive behind the operation.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump teased his upcoming assembly with U.S. oil manufacturing executives this week while talking to House Republicans. “You know what that’s about. We got a lot of oil to drill, which is going to bring down oil prices even further,” Trump said.

Venezuela has the world’s largest oil reserves, roughly 17% of global reserves, or 303 billion barrels, surpassing those of Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) chief Saudi Arabia, according to the London-based Energy Institute. However, its crude output has remained at a fraction of capability due to mismanagement, lack of investment, and sanctions.