SOCO International is preparing to sink its teeth into a juicy exploration tract south-east of Vietnam. According to industry sources, the London-based independent was recently notified by state company PetroVietnam that it had been the successful bidder for block 9-2 in a re-tender. Soco declined to comment. Block 9-2 lies directly north-east of Vietnam's flagship Bach Ho (White Tiger) oilfield in the Cuu Long basin, which is producing more than 230,000 barrels of oil per day, mostly from basement rock.