Ireland

Marathon operates the Kinsale Head, Ballycotton and Seven Heads fields off the south coast of Ireland, and holds an interest in the Corrib gas development project off the northwest coast. Marathon was the first company to produce natural gas in Ireland.

Kinsale Head

Located in the Celtic Sea, the Kinsale Head Field came on stream in 1978. The Ballycotton subsea satellite was added in 1991, while the Southwest Kinsale Field became operational in 1999. Kinsale Head gas is produced to two platforms: Alpha, which is the main processing platform, and Bravo, which is a Normally Unmanned Installation (NUI), without processing facilities. Gas is exported from the Alpha platform to a terminal near Cork, where it is metered and transferred to the Irish national utility, Bord Gáis Éireann (BGE), for nationwide transmission and distribution.

Ireland's first seasonal production facility was installed in 2001 using the Southwest Kinsale Field. The seasonal production facility enables gas to be injected during the summer and delivered to the Irish market in the winter, when demand is higher. Marathon was awarded the first commercial gas storage license in Ireland in June 2006. The license allows the provision of full third-party storage services from the Southwest Kinsale Field.

Marathon further developed the Kinsale Head area in 2003 by drilling and developing an additional subsea gas well. This subsea gas well was designed to enhance the productivity of the main Kinsale Head Greensand reservoir and has been tied back to Marathon's Kinsale Head Bravo platform. Production began in July 2003.

Seven Heads

In 2002, Marathon entered into an agreement with the Seven Heads group, operated by Ramco Oil & Gas, to provide gas processing and transportation services, as well as field operating services, through Marathon's existing Kinsale Head facilities. The Seven Heads Field is 22 miles southwest of Marathon's Kinsale Head Bravo platform and came on stream in December 2003. Marathon acquired Ramco's 86.5 percent interest in Seven Heads Field, including operatorship, in the first quarter of 2006.

Corrib

The Corrib gas development project is approximately 40 miles off Ireland's northwest coast, where five appraisal/development wells necessary to develop the field have already been drilled, with a sixth well to be drilled in 2007. Marathon holds an 18.5 percent interest in the Corrib development. Shell serves as the operator holding a 45 percent interest. Corrib will enable Ireland to replace gas imports from the U.K. with indigenous supplies. At peak production, Corrib will supply approximately 60 percent of Ireland's gas demand. First production from the field is expected in 2009, with an estimated net production of approximately 50 mmcfd of natural gas.

Marathon's partners in Corrib gas are Shell E & P Ireland Ltd (45 percent and operator) and Statoil Exploration Ireland Ltd (36.5 percent). For more information, please visit the operator's Corrib website.