VN takes the lead in extracting oil from fractured basement

According to PetroVietnam General Director Trần Ngọc Cảnh, in the 1950s, oil-containing fractured basement were accidentally discovered in Venezuela, the US and Morocco. Exploration and exploitation activities were sped up in the 1960s, but no result was made.

In 1987, the VietsoPetro Joint-venture found a special and rare oil reservoir in the basement at the Bạch Hổ field. The reservoir, 2,000 m thick, can produce 600 million tons of oil and dozens of billions of cubic meters of gas.

On September 6, 1988, Việt Nam successfully extracted the first ton of oil from this field. The event marked a milestone in oil search, exploration and exploitation in Việt Nam's continental shelf in particular and in the world in general.

Following Bạch Hổ, a series of reservoirs in fractured basement and caves have been found one by one. Many international oil corporations have sought cooperation with Việt Nam.

Up to now, Việt Nam’s petroleum output tapped from fractured basement has reached 1,4 billion barrels, accounting for 90% of the total oil production, and tens of billions of cubic meters of gas, bringing about an export turnover of about US $14-15 billion in 2007.

By Ngọc Vân