As the new year brings a wave of potential for the global upstream market, a new development in the Southeast Asian market has the potential to reshape the region’s upstream sector. Murphy Oil, an independent oil producer, has announced that its subsidiary has successfully drilled the appraisal well in Vietnam’s latest upstream development. The rapid expansion of the Asian upstream market has become necessary to meet increased demand in the region.
Murphy Oil Corporation has advanced its latest upstream development in Asia
As the world enters a new year loaded with potential for upstream output, Murphy Oil is advancing its presence in the Asian energy market, as the company recently announced that it has successfully drilled the Hai Su Vang-2X appraisal well in Block 15-2/17 of Vietnam’s Cuu Long Basin.
The company noted that the well spud in October of last year marked a major milestone in the company’s strategy for the Asian upstream market. The well was drilled to appraise the Hai Su Vang discovery, which was made in 2025.
The initial well encountered roughly 370 feet of net oil pay across two reservoirs in the Cuu Long Basin. The development of the latest upstream project in Vietnam comes as the world has seen the global oil and gas market reacting to the ousting of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by the United States.
“We’re going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition. We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure, and start making money for the country.” – Donald Trump on ousting Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela
Murphy Oil has been aiming to boost the output capacity from Asian energy projects
The remarkable turnaround for the global upstream market has been a sight for sore eyes across the international energy market. For the past few years, nations and companies have been contemplating measures to increase energy output from the renewable energy market.
This new approach to energy generation has raised concerns over the conventional oil and gas markets. Thankfully, by advancing projects like the Vietnam upstream development, companies like Murphy Oil can rest a bit easier in the knowledge that the conventional oil and gas market will play a role in the global energy market for years to come.
“This is a pivotal moment for our Vietnam business. The success of HSV-2X not only reinforces the commerciality of the Hai Su Vang field but also sets the stage for a robust development program. We are proud of our team’s execution and remain committed to working closely with our partners and the Vietnamese Government to unlock the full potential of this asset.” – Eric Hambly, President and Chief Executive Officer
Murphy Oil will allow its subsidiaries, namely Murphy Cuu Long Tay Oil Co., Ltd. and Murphy Cuu Long Bac Oil Co., to serve as the operators for the new Blocks in Vietnam. The Asian upstream market is set to grow this year, with India launching its biggest-ever licensing round for upstream developments.
New auction rounds paint a pretty picture for the upstream market in 2026
With the new year in full swing, the reality of the global energy market situation is that more upstream developments are set to come online in the near future. New auction rounds across the world have energy companies salivating at the prospect of new developments across the world. Even previously overlooked markets, like the African one, have seen this year promising new upstream developments. Nigeria has announced its latest auction round for upstream developments, set to happen sometime this month.
