Nido Petroleum advised that the Philippine Department of Energy approved the request of Service Contract 54 (SC 54) joint venture partners to partition the Contract into two areas -- Area A and Area B.

SC 54 is located in the Palawan Basin in the Philippines. Area A, the inboard, shallow water area, holds 4 discoveries, including Tindalo and Yakal which were made during Nido's 2008 drilling campaign. Nido has previously announced its intention to fast-track first oil from Tindalo (subject to final investment decision) to deliver a second revenue stream to Nido in the near term.

SC 54 Area A now encompasses some 867 sq. km covering the inboard, shallow water portion of the Contract area including the Tindalo and Yakal oil discoveries and the associated portfolio of shallow water discoveries and targets.

SC 54 Area B covers some 3179 sq. km of the deeper water area of the block which contains the large Gindara Prospect along with several other attractive exploration targets.

Tags: Kairiki Energy Limited, Nido Petroleum Limited