INPEX acquired a participating interest in WA-285-P offshore Western Australia through an open bid in August 1998. In 2000, after conducting exploration activities as an operator, INPEX discovered the high-potential Ichthys gas-condensate field. Eight exploratory wells drilled by INPEX confirmed the presence of sufficient reserves for a large-scale LNG project. Later, in September 2008, a site in Darwin was selected for construction of an onshore LNG plant. FEED work on this plant began in January 2009, after which in April of the same year FEED work also commenced on offshore production facilities. Having made the FID on the Ichthys LNG Project in January 2012, development is now under way, with commencement of production planned by the end of 2016.

INPEX also retains interests in nine blocks surrounding the Ichthys gas-condensate field. Exploration activities are ongoing. Any discoveries of major oil or gas reserves in these blocks could considerably increase the potential of the Ichthys field benefiting from synergistic effects.

INPEX acquired participating interests in WA-155-P (Part I) in July 1999, after which the Van Gogh and Ravensworth oil fields were discovered. The Australian Government granted production licenses (WA-35-L and WA-43-L) for those two blocks, in which oil production commenced in February and August of 2010, respectively.

The decision to develop the Coniston Unit, which saddles WA-35-L and WA-44-R, was made in December 2011, and work targeting the commencement of production in the fourth quarter of the year ending March 2013 is under way. Average crude oil production for the first year of operation of the Coniston Unit is expected to be 21.5 Mbbld.

In April 1993, INPEX acquired a participating interest in JPDA03-12, a contract area located in the Timor Sea JPDA. Exploration within this contract area resulted in the discovery of oil and gas fields. Of these, studies revealed that the Undan structure and the Bayu structure in the adjacent JPDA03-13 contract area were a single structure. The interest holders unitized both contract areas in 1999, allowing joint development of the Bayu-Undan Gas-Condensate Field to proceed. The commercial production and shipment of condensate and LPG started in 2004, and LNG in February 2006.

The presence of oil was confirmed through exploration drilling of the Kitan-1 and Kitan-2 wells in March 2008 in the JPDA06-105 contract area, which INPEX acquired in January 1992. Thereafter, we obtained approval for the final development plan from the Timor Sea JPDA authorities in April 2010. After development works, the production at the Kitan Oil Field commenced in October 2011.

In June 2012, we acquired from Shell a 17.5% participating interest in the Prelude FLNG Project, which is under development in offshore Western Australia. The Prelude FLNG Project consists of the Prelude and Concerto gas fields and will produce 3.6 million tons per year of LNG, 400 thousand tons per year of LPG at peak and approximately 36 Mbbld of condensate at peak. Shell made the FID on the Prelude FLNG Project, which will be the world's first FLNG project, in May 2011. Development of the Prelude FLNG Project is currently under way, with the start of production targeted at around 10 years from when the Prelude Gas Field was first discovered in early 2007.