SK earthon Begins Producing Oil at Vietnam’s ‘Golden Camel’ Field, Expanding Production Base

[Financial News] SK Innovation Co., Ltd.’s resource development subsidiary SK earthon has begun producing crude oil from Vietnam’s 15-1/05 block. Following the Vietnam 15-1 block, which began production in 2003, the company has expanded its production base in the country. It is also considering further development linked to existing production facilities after identifying an additional reservoir at a nearby exploration structure.
On the 13th, according to SK Innovation Co., Ltd. and the block’s operator, U.S.-based Murphy Oil, the Golden Camel structure in the 15-1/05 block, located in the Cuu Long Basin offshore southeastern Vietnam, began producing its first crude oil at the end of last month. Production started ahead of the original schedule, which had targeted the fourth quarter of this year.
The Golden Camel structure has estimated recoverable resources of about 60 million barrels. It is currently producing crude oil from its first production well, with additional wells set to come online in sequence. SK Innovation Co., Ltd. expects total crude production from the block to reach up to 25,000 barrels per day once further development is complete.
The 15-1/05 block’s interests are held by operator Murphy Oil (40%), Vietnam’s state-owned oil development company PVEP (35%), and SK earthon (25%). Murphy Oil expects Golden Camel production to increase in stages through 2028 as additional production wells come online.
Oil has also been confirmed through further exploration. SK earthon and Murphy Oil drilled the North White Camel structure near Golden Camel to a depth of about 3,800 meters and discovered a 56-meter-thick reservoir. Murphy Oil assessed the net pay within it at about 40 meters. The two companies will further evaluate the exploration results before deciding whether to proceed with development.
The possibility of using Golden Camel’s production facilities to develop the nearby discovery is also expected to affect the project’s future economics. Murphy Oil said that if North White Camel is connected to Golden Camel’s production infrastructure, this could reduce investment costs and development time compared with building new facilities separately.
Previously, SK earthon discovered oil at another structure in the 15-1/05 block and conducted test production; it also made a successful oil discovery in the nearby 15-2/17 block.


SK earthon is pursuing a ‘clustering’ strategy that links exploration, development, and production infrastructure across adjacent blocks in the Cuu Long Basin. Rather than limiting activity to individual exploration projects, the approach uses existing production facilities to develop nearby oil fields, reducing development costs and project timelines.
Resource development is one of SK Innovation Co., Ltd.’s sources of cash generation. According to the company’s half-year report, proved reserves stood at 290 million barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) at the end of last year. Its share of crude oil allocated in the second quarter of this year totaled 4.8 million BOE, averaging about 52,400 BOE per day, while oil development revenue in the first half of the year was 745.7 billion won.
The specific contribution of Golden Camel production to SK Innovation Co., Ltd.’s oil development results has not yet been disclosed. Production volumes and earnings contributions from its Vietnam operations are expected to vary depending on the commissioning of additional wells and progress in developing nearby structures.
A representative of SK earthon said, “The first crude production from the Golden Camel structure is the result of the clustering strategy we have pursued in Vietnam,” adding, “Going forward, we will expand our Vietnam operations through linked development between adjacent blocks and strengthen our position in Southeast Asia’s resource development market.”
Since first entering the resource development business in 1983, SK Innovation affiliates, including SK earthon, have come to participate in 13 blocks and five gas fields across 11 countries worldwide.

[email protected] Kim Mi-hee Reporter