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Mobil and STPETRO Sign Technical Assistance Agreement

10 September 1998

Mobil and STPETRO Sign Technical Assistance Agreement Covering Deepwater Acreage Offshore West Africa

    FAIRFAX, Va.--Sept. 10, 1998--Mobil Corporation announced today that its subsidiary Mobil New Exploration Ventures group and Sao Tome and Principe National Petroleum Co. (STPETRO) have signed a Technical Assistance Agreement to evaluate the hydrocarbon potential of offshore acreage of the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, an island state located south of Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea in West Africa.
    Under the terms of the agreement, Mobil will complete an 18- month technical evaluation which will concentrate on deepwater Blocks 1 through 22 covering about 12 million acres located in the Exclusive Economic Development Zone of Sao Tome and Principe.
    Mobil will then have the exclusive option to negotiate a production sharing contract on the acreage with STPETRO for further evaluation through exploratory drilling.
    The Sao Tome and Principe acreage will be a good strategic and operational fit to Mobil's portfolio in the Niger Delta region, where it already operates significant production in Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea, and is another step toward its goal of increasing its substantial hydrocarbon reserve position offshore West Africa.
    "We're pleased to be working with the government of Sao Tome and Principe to evaluate their country's hydrocarbon resources," said M. W. Scoggins, President, International Exploration and Producing. "It underscores our commitment to West Africa as an area of major growth for Mobil and we're hopeful that it will mark the beginning of an era of progress and prosperity for Sao Tome and Principe."
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