Discussions are ongoing with drilling and service contractors but it is now likely that the well will be spudded during October of this year and will take about 11 days to drill plus additional time to complete.

The drilling follows three wells, WR-N4, WB-N5, WB-N6, which perforated over the F Sandstone interval in central Thailand and represents the third phase of Carnarvon's Thai program.

Huai Phai is a four way dip closed anticlinal structure delineated by a 2D and 3D seismic grid and lies two kilometers immediately to the west of the producing Wichian Buri oil field.

The well will be drilled to about 1050m to test the regionally extensive F Sandstone as the primary target with the G Sandstone providing a secondary target.

A mature hydrocarbon source is known to exist in the adjacent fault block and oils shows have been encountered up dip from Huai Phai suggesting that it is within the migration fairway.

Huai Phai has an areal closure of 2.2sq.km and the operator has estimated that Huai Phai could contain some 14mmbo in place based on locally derived reservoir parameters with 2.5mmbo recoverable. The Huai Phai-1 site location is fully constructed.