Australian energy company Woodside said it raised its reserve estimate for natural gas offshore Myanmar at a time when sanctions pressures are easing, according to a UPI report May 20.
Myanmar is a central part of the company’s plans to deliver 2.4 billion barrels of oil equivalent in growth projects over the next decade, the company told investors this week. 
Woodside said it increased its best estimate of the contingent reserve potential offshore Myanmar by 83 million barrels of oil equivalent following the technical evaluation of two exploration wells drilled in the area, according to the report.
The discovery would help ensure its portfolio is enhanced in line with emerging strategies to drill as many as seven new wells in the region by next year, according to Peter Coleman, the company's chief executive officer.
"Our strategy is to fully appraise the discovery in one campaign, thereby facilitating concept select in 2017," he said in a statement.
Offshore oil and gas exploration, a costly procedure, has been negatively affected around the world by the drop in oil prices that over the last two years has brought the price per barrel from around US$100 to below US$50 due to an oversupply in the market. World oil prices are predicted to remain at this level in the short to medium term.