Apache's North Sea Beryl Field Well Flows 11,625 Barrels, 13 MMcf Of Gas Per Day; Rate Is Highest For U.K. Beryl Field Since 2001

Apache Corporation (NYSE: APA) today announced that an extension well had initial production rates higher than any oil well drilled at the Beryl Field in the U.K. North Sea since 2001."We're very excited about this well because we've found virgin reservoir pressure in two of three zones containing more than 300 feet of net true vertical pay," said Jim House, regional vice president and managing director of Apache North Sea. "This is one of the best wells drilled in the past 10 years in the Beryl Field and we expect it to open up further development opportunities."The B72 was drilled as a deviated well from the Beryl Bravo Platform and logged a total of 619 feet measured depth (305 feet TVD) of net oil pay in three separate Jurassic aged reservoir units. The well was completed in the high quality Beryl-I reservoir, which was found at original pressure of 5220 psi and commenced production at a rate of 11,625 barrels of oil per day (b/d) and 13.1 million cubic feet (MMcf) of natural gas per day.Finding the Beryl-1 reservoir in a fault block at original field pressures within the Beryl field is an encouraging result that highlights the complexity and remaining potential of the field. A new 3D seismic survey is planned for summer 2012, the first since 1997.