ExxonMobil will fund the work program and receive a 50% interest in the acreage upon completion. MOL will retain the remaining 50%. The exploration program covers 387,000 acres, with wells drilled to depths of approximately 4,300 meters.
ExxonMobil plans to spud the first wells in 2008 and conduct well testing and reservoir evaluation studies over two to three years. The goal of the program is to evaluate the potential for commercial production of unconventional gas and liquid hydrocarbons.
The exploration program is the next phase under an agreement signed in 2007, between MOL and ExxonMobil, to undertake a joint technical study of basins in Hungary with unconventional hydrocarbon potential.
Elwyn Griffiths, ExxonMobil Exploration Company’s vice president for business development, said: We will deploy ExxonMobil processes that enable us to drill faster and accurately perform very complex well completions. Our technology has proven successful in increasing the effectiveness and reducing the costs of other unconventional exploration and development programs.
