Total drills second well in the Antelope-Elk development

Papua New Guinea

SINGAPORE, December 25, 2015 – Total began drilling the Antelope-6 appraisal well in the Gulf province of Papua New Guinea on Thursday.

Total has a 40.1275% stake in the well and work will begin in the third quarter of 2016, with first gas expected in 2018.

Total’s partner in the PRL 15 licence where the well is located is Papua New Guinean independent Interoil, which is also developing the world’s lowest-cost newbuild LNG project, to be supplied by Antelope gas.

ExxonMobil has a competing project that will cost USD 19 billion, named PNG LNG, near Total’s proposed development site. The seven fields that will supply ExxonMobil’s facility are 350 km closer to Papua New Guinea’s capital Port Moresby.