LOS ANGELES, Oct. 26, 1999 (PRIMEZONE) -- ARCO (NYSE:ARC) announced today that it has reached agreement with Burlington Resources, Inc. on the sale of ARCO's Ecuador operations and other ARCO-held Latin American exploration properties.
The sale is subject to Government approvals and to partner preemption options.
In Ecuador, ARCO Oriente Inc. early this summer started production from Villano, a 200 million barrel field of 21-degree crude oil which was discovered in 1992. ARCO has a 60 percent interest in the Ecuador Block 10 service contract, which includes the Villano field, the most significant property in the proposed sale package. Gross production from the field is estimated to reach 40,000 barrels of oil per day in the first half of 2000.
The sale package also includes Block 24 in Ecuador, which was awarded to ARCO under a Participation Contract in 1998 for a 4-year exploration period, with an optional 2-year extension. Other blocks in the package are Peru Block 64 and Colombia Blocks Los Galeones and Fragata.
ARCO is a worldwide integrated hydrocarbons corporation with operations encompassing all aspects of the oil and gas business: exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids, and the refining, marketing and transportation of petroleum products. In addition to its Ecuador operations, ARCO has significant activities on the North Slope of Alaska and in the Gulf of Mexico, Venezuela, the Permian Basin, China, Indonesia, the North Sea and North Africa.
(Cautionary Note: Some of the matters discussed in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially based on numerous factors, including the realized level of crude oil and natural gas production and other risks detailed from time to time in the company's reports to the SEC, including the 1998 report on Form 10-K.)