Inpex is the operator of Block S with a 75% interest while Petronas Carigali holds the remaining 25%.
Santos’ vice president for Asia, John Anderson, said at the SEAAOC event in Darwin that Santos has farmed in to the Block S venture.
The first of two back-to-back exploration wells is due to spud in October.
“We don’t want to tinker around with small exploration opportunities,” said Anderson. “We want to explore for material opportunities with high upside.”
Block S is located 120 kilometres north-west of Kota Kinabalu in waters ranging from 200 metres to 1500 metres.