Woodside Petroleum's search for suppliers and gas for its Pluto project seems to be getting delayed second stage approval into 2011 at the least.

Woodside declined to reaffirm its final investment target decision for 2010 on Friday.

"FID for Pluto expansion trains remains contingent on identification of economically viable gas resources, either through exploration volumes and or/other resource owners," Woodside stated in its production report for the second quarter on Friday.

A Woodside spokesman commented that more specifics regarding the expansion and whether approval of the board would push through this year would be announced with the firm's profit report for the first half of 2010 the following month.

Woodside is supposed to produce gas starting early 2011 from the Pluto project worth $13 billion.

Woodside is currently drilling at the Pluto site to make a second train, but in its report on Friday was not able to make new gas discovery success announcements, stating that two exploration wells were dry.

Woodside is also currently discussing with third party suppliers, which includes BHP Billiton and Hess, but progress regarding the matter was not disclosed as well.

In an earlier media report, Aden Bradley, analyst from Goldman Sachs JBWere, stated he was expecting outcomes from Woodside's four drilling operations.

Only two holes were mentioned, and both of them were dry.

Several brokers analysts and have foreseen Woodside's backtracking on the project, including Macquarie. Adrian Wood, analyst from Macquarie, said last week that a third party gas contract, speculated to be with Hess Corporation, would possibly dilute upside exposure of the firm to its most accretive expansion project and might as well be a last resort for Woodside.

Mr. Wood also remarked that the sluggish progress at the LNG project at Gorgon, Woodside's competitor, may buy some time for the firm.

"As a result, we do not expect to see FID this year as management will want to know all its alternatives rather than be rushed into developing a marginal resource or signing a poor third-party supply deal merely to meet the deadline," Mr. Wood stated in his client note.

Woodside said on Friday that the first delivery from Pluto is at 91 per cent completion and stands by its guidance of shipping LNG products starting March 2011.