Reed Tablemount

Subsequent to the Chinese occupation of Mischief Reef in the mid-1990s, a Philippine World War II-vintage naval landing craft, (LST 57 - Sierra Madre), was deliberately run aground on the Second Thomas Shoal in 1999 to maintain a Philippine naval outpost in the area; more than 15 years later it continues to be manned by about a dozen Philippine Marines. In June 2019 a Filipino fishing vessel anchored at the Reed Bank was hit and sunk by a Chinese fishing vessel. The Armed Forces of the Philippines stated that they believed it to be a deliberate attack given the nature of the incident, the wood-hulled Filipino vessel Gimver 1 was sitting at anchor when hit, and the steel-hulled Chinese vessel which hit it failed to stop and offer assistance after the incident. The 22 crew members had to be rescued off of the sinking vessel by a nearby Vietnamese fishing vessel which responded to their distress calls. == Oil, gas and SC72 ==

Seismic surveys indicate that the Reed Tablemount is rich in oil and gas deposits, but they have only been partly tapped due to disputed claims from various countries, most particularly the PRC. Exploration in the area began in 1970, and in 1976 gas was discovered in the Sampaguita structure following the drilling of a well. In total, three wells have been drilled to date, all located at the south west end of the Sampaguita structure. The initial 2-year concession by the Philippines' Government to extract the resources, (SC72, formerly GSEC101,) was awarded to Sterling Energy PLC in June 2002. In April 2005, Forum Energy PLC (FEP) acquired the concession from Sterling and became its operator. Forum Energy chose to cease on-site operations in the face of the Chinese aggression. In July 2011 the Philippines' Department of Energy (DOE) approved the commencement of a 2-year phase of the project leading to the drilling of 2 wells, and preparations commenced. However, the PRC Government had also granted exploration rights to the area to the PRC State-owned China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC). The PRC objected to the Philippine arrangement. The requisite approvals from the Philippine DOE to commence drilling were not issued, and the project was placed on hold. == References ==