Energy authorities of Myanmar and Thailand are negotiating for the construction of a marine joint venture natural gas pipeline for export of gas to Thailand from M- 9 block in Myanmar’s Mottama offshore area, according to sources with the Myanmar energy ministry Friday.

The M-9 field development project is expected to need a total investment of 1 billion U.S. dollars, the local Myanmar Times also said.

The Thai PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP) Public Co Ltd, which has been engaged in gas exploration at block M-9 in the offshore area, has so far found large and commercial gas deposits at seven test wells since 2005.

With a total estimated gas reserve of more than 8 trillion cubic-feet (TCF) or 226.5 billion cubic-meters (BCM) and a production rate of about 300 million cubic-feet (MCF) or 8.49 million cubic-meters (MCM) per day, the M-9 field is expected to be able to produce gas and export to Thailand by late 2011 the earliest.

The seven test wells where gas deposit was discovered are Zawtika-1, Gawthaka-1, Karkonna-1, Zawtika-2, Zawtika-3, Zawtika-4 and Zawtika-5. Of them, and the last Zawtika-5 was found in July this year yielding at 38.36 MCF (1.08 MCM) per day from up to a depth of 7,414 feet (2,224 meters) and 33 MCF (0.934 MCM) per day from up to a depth of 5,199 feet (1,559 meters), according to a then official report.

The authorities described the gas deposit discovery as being similar to that in three other huge gas fields of Yadana, Yetagun and Shwe previously explored and developed.

The PTTEP has already been engaged in four other gas projects in Myanmar in blocks M-7, M-3, M-4 and M-11 in the same Mottama offshore area.

Myanmar has abundance of natural gas resources especially in the offshore areas. With three main large offshore oil and gas fields and 19 onshore ones, Myanmar has proven recoverable reserve of 18.012 TCF ( 510 BCM) out of 89.722 TCF or 2.54 trillion cubic- meters (TCM)’s estimated reserve of offshore and onshore gas, experts said.

The country is also estimated to have 3.2 billion barrels of recoverable crude oil reserve, official statistics indicate.

The Myanmar figures also show that in the fiscal year 2005-06, the country produced 7.962 million barrels of crude oil and 11.45 BCM of gas. Gas export during the year went to 9.138 BCM, earning over 1 billion U.S. dollars.

In the first three quarter of 2006-07 which ended in March, Myanmar produced 5.822 million barrels of crude oil and 9.819 BCM of gas, with he latest statistics also showing that gas export during the period went to 8.124 BCM, gaining 1.24 billion dollars.

Other statistics reveal that foreign investment in Myanmar’s oil and gas sector had reached 2.769 billion dollars as of the end of 2006 since the country opened to such investment in late 1988, standing the second in the country’s foreign investment sectorally after electric power.

Currently, 13 foreign oil companies, mainly from Australia, Britain, Canada, China, Indonesia, India, South Korea, Malaysia, Thailand and Russia, are operating 33 onshore and offshore projects in Myanmar, official sources disclosed.