Murphy Oil bets on Vietnam growth as offshore projects advance

U.S. energy giant Murphy Oil is accelerating its offshore expansion in Vietnam, advancing development at the Lac Da Vang field while ramping up appraisal work at the Hai Su Vang discovery, which the company described as the largest oil find in Southeast Asia in two decades.

The U.S. energy producer disclosed updated timelines and investment plans for its Vietnamese assets in its Q1/2026 business review, underscoring Vietnam’s growing importance within the company’s regional portfolio.

Murphy progressed the Hai Su Vang-3X appraisal well at the Hai Su Vang field in the Cuu Long basin off the coast of Vietnam, with results from the full appraisal program slated for Q3/2026, it said.

In January 2026, Murphy Oil announced that appraisal drilling had successfully expanded estimated recoverable reserves at the field to more than 430 million barrels of oil equivalent. Executives described Hai Su Vang as the most significant oil and gas discovery in Southeast Asia in the past 20 years.

Beyond Hai Su Vang, Murphy plans additional exploration activity in Vietnam later this year, including a well at the White Camel North in Block 15-1/05 during the second half of 2026. The company also signaled optimism around the Lac Da Hong prospect.

Regarding the Lac Da Vang (Golden Camel) field development in Block 15-1/05, the firm made inroads in the construction of a floating storage and offloading (FSO) vessel in the Southeast Asian country. The FSO is now ready to launch and is set to be delivered to the location in Q3/2026 in line with the schedule. The project is on track for first oil in Q4 this year.

Murphy forecasts average production from Vietnam at roughly 500 barrels of oil equivalent per day (BOE/D) in 2026, before ramping up significantly. Peak output from Lac Da Vang is expected to reach between 10,000 and 15,000 BOE/D during 2028-2029.

Eric Hambly, Murphy Oil’s president and CEO, commented: “During these uncertain times, our strategy is to stay anchored to what we control – disciplined capital allocation, safe and reliable operations, and our long‑cycle projects.

“In the first quarter, this focus translated into strong execution across our portfolio with meaningful progress at Lac Da Vang in Vietnam, advancement of the high-impact Chinook #8 well in the Gulf of America, and sustained outperformance from our US and Canada onshore programs,” he stressed.

The CEO said Vietnamese crude benefits from both quality and geography. Oil produced from the company’s Vietnamese assets has an API gravity of 37-38 degrees, considered relatively light and desirable for refiners. Combined with Vietnam’s proximity to major Asian import markets, Murphy expects long-term realized pricing to remain at a premium of $2-3 per barrel above Brent crude benchmarks.

In its report, the firm revealed that it spent about $39 million in Vietnam during Q1, including $24 million for development of Lac Da Vang and $15 million for appraisal drilling activities. For full-year 2026, Vietnam is expected to account for around 16% of Murphy’s planned global capital expenditure budget of $1.25 billion, equivalent to roughly $200 million.