Beach has said it will be funding more drilling but with its ongoing production providing excellent cash flows, it is more likely MD Reg Nelson will look at mopping up one of its neighbours, Stuart Petroleum being in the too hard basket.

Out in the oilfields, the Mutineer-Exeter and Cliff Head projects all got formal approval this week, Cliff Head just this morning.

The Mutineer-Exeter project will be one of Australia's largest oilfield developments in nearly a decade with initial production forecasts for a daily rate of 70,000 to 80,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd), building up to 100,000bopd.

Not to be outdone by the Mutineer-Exeter news, the partners in the Cliff Head joint venture have declared that the field is commercially viable and they will immediately proceed with Front End Engineering and Design ("FEED") following the award of the relevant contract next week.

Fallout continues in NZ from Methanex's withdrawal from the Burrup Peninsula in WA which means that almost double the number of New Zealand staff are set to lose their jobs next year, instead of being relocated.

Still in NZ and Energy Minister Pete Hodgson has put the cat among the pigeons by saying smaller, remote generators should be able to connect to local lines networks, free of charge. Not surprisingly the lines companies have spat the dummy.

LNG has hit the headlines again in NZ with the country's largest gas users, Contact Energy and Genesis Power, teaming up to investigate the feasibility of developing a multi-million-dollar LNG receiving facility in New Zealand.

Over 125,000 WA homes and businesses (including ERN) went without power last Friday for two and a half hours, highlighting the need for investment in the troubled sector. Your correspondents can accurately report that the cold plate at the adjacent Wembley Hotel remained operational throughout the blackout.

The Victorian government has given the thumbs up to a proposed wind farm at Wonthaggi according to a report from the Australian Wind Energy Association. Wind Power Pty Ltd will build six turbines on a cleared 57 hectare cattle grazing property located at Wonthaggi in South Gippsland.

Troubled Australian minnow Empire Oil & Gas has received a new lease of life with the acquisition of Gulliver Productions, including its portfolio of petroleum exploration assets, and the appointment of the experienced Dr Bevan Warris to the company's board.

In the US, Orchard Petroleum has reached agreement with Matris Exploration (Matris) and Nahabedian Exploration Group (NEG) to begin developing the Forbes Gas Play in California.

The ever-travelling Global Petroleum executive team has snagged another exploration play, this time in Indonesia after striking a deal with a local private company to earn 90% of a PSC in the region.

Adatepe-3 has made it three out of three for Amity Oil in the Adatepe field following a successful production test from the well over an 11.5m gas bearing interval.

In Victoria, Santos and partners have spudded the Casino-3 well in the offshore Otway Basin, Victoria.

Sunshine Gas has gone through more organisational changes following the announcement last week of James Hudleston's appointment as the new non-executive chairman, the re-appointment of Anthony Gilby as managing director and the appointment of Christopher Blamey as finance director.

Following the success of the Worrior-1 well Cooper Energy and Stuart Petroleum have spudded the Kiwi-1 exploration well in PEL 90 in the Cooper/Eromanga Basin.

Kalrez Energy has disappeared from the ASX directory last Monday following the company's name change to Lion Energy and will now be listed under the new stock code of LIO.

The L1/L2 joint venture partners, Arc Energy and Origin Energy, have continued their Perth Basin drilling program with the spudding of the Hovea-9 oil appraisal and development well.

Woodside Energy is looking to massively increase its African acreage under a farmin agreement following the completion of a 2,272km offshore Kenyan 2-D seismic survey.

Oil Search has offloaded its 20% legacy stake in the Porgera gold mine for $US73.8 million, a remnant of its acquisition of fellow PNG explorer, Orogen Minerals.