
Energy officials are optimistic about finding new petroleum fields in the Andaman Sea following the successful discovery of petroleum in the lower part of the Andaman, says the Department of Mineral Fuels (DMF).
Mubadala Energy, a national oil and gas firm based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, announced it discovered gas reserves in the area in 2023 after being granted a petroleum exploration and production (E&P) licence from the Indonesian government.
DMF director-general Warakorn Brahmopala expects Thailand, which borders the Andaman Sea on its west coast, can make a similar discovery with fresh exploration efforts.
"We are preparing to call for bids for offshore petroleum E&P licences in the 26th auction round," he said.
The exploration area will be located far from tourist locations, said Mr Warakorn.
The department plans to start receiving applications for the bidding in July, with the successful bidder announced later this year.
Many oil companies, including multinational petroleum E&P firms, have shown interest in the auction round, he said.
The government granted a licence to a company to explore for petroleum in the Andaman for the first time in 1971. More licences were issued in the following years until 2005, but no oil or gas was discovered.
Reports were published that predicted areas off Thailand's Andaman coast have the potential for development into new petroleum production sites, but these sites were never proved.
With more recent advanced technology in the E&P field, Mr Warakorn said he believes companies can successfully discover petroleum.
Prasert Sinsukprasert, energy permanent secretary, said earlier it is possible to find new petroleum sources near current offshore gas fields in Myanmar.
In Indonesia, Mubadala Energy first discovered a gas reserve at the Layaran-1 well in the South Andaman in December 2023.
In May 2024, the company announced the second successful discovery of gas at the Tangkulo-1 well, also located in the South Andaman.
The Tangkulo-1 exploration well, roughly 65 kilometres off North Sumatra, is estimated to have more than 2 trillion cubic feet of gas-in-place, which positions the Andaman area as one of the world's most important gas plays, according to Mubadala Energy's website.