The flow from about 44m of Nido limestone reservoir surpassed pre-test expectations without any artificial lift and was limited by the hardware.

"This is a momentous day for Nido. Tindalo transforms us into a fully fledged oil-production operator and we have more than earned our stripes as a development operator, with first oil coming on schedule within budget expectations and with no accidents or injuries," Nido chief executive officer Jocot de Dios said.

The well has since been put onto extended well testing through the Tove Knutsen floating storage and offtake vessel from the production processing system on the Aquamarine Driller, which Nido exercised its 10-month option on.

De Dios said Tindalo will fund Nido's five-well exploration drilling program in the Palawan Basin over the next 18-24 months, adding that its success made the company keen to drill the Gindara prospect, which lies just outboard of the same trend.

Nido deputy managing director Joanne Williams said it was particularly welcome that the natural well flow exceeded the hardware capacity.

"The EWT on Tindalo commenced June 6 at an approximate 15,000 barrels per day. Some water has been produced to surface which may be a natural phenomenon of the reservoir or may have been introduced during the drilling and completion process," she added.

"The well will be tested at various flow rates during the EWT to determine the optimum reservoir and watercut management strategy."

Nido also noted work will now be accelerated on the SC 54A area development planning, with the Tindaloo testing results used to update subsurface models for a number of prospects and leads within the block, then to rank and prioritise subsequent targets for drilling and/or completion.

Partner Kairiki added Tindalo's recoverable reserves had been previously estimated by Nido at about 5.1 million barrels of oil.

Nido is operator and holds a 42.4% interest in SC54A. Kairiki Energy has 30.1% while Trafigura and TG World Corporation hold 15% and 12.5% respectively.