The US independent indicated that the Shenandoah-5 probe would be drilled in Walker Ridge Block 51.

"We have high expectations for it, but we need to drill the well and see," chief financial officer Robert Gwin told investors on a conference call Tuesday.

The well lies essentially between the original Shenandoah-1 discovery well and the Shenandoah-4 appraisal well.

A sixth probe could even follow depending on the results obtained, Daniels said.

Anadarko