Australia: Beach Energy Strikes Gas at Otway Basin Well

Australian oil and gas company Beach Energy has made a gas discovery at Enterprise 1 well in license VIC/P42(V) in the nearshore Victorian Otway Basin, Australia.

The Enterprise 1 was spud from an onshore location, 3.5 km from Port Campbell and 8 km from the Otway Gas Plant. 

The well was drilled directionally using an extended reach drilling (ERD) approach to deliver a well with a 3.2-kilometer step-out, to target a location within the offshore permit VIC/P42(V).

"The well was successfully drilled to a total depth of 4,974 meters measured depth (MD) and encountered the primary reservoir target of the Upper Waarre Formation 89 meters high to prognosis at a depth of 4,594 m (MD) (2,052 metres vertical depth sub-sea). The well intersected 146 meters of gas column in the Upper Waarre Formation, including 115 meters of net gas pay with no gas-water contact identified. Sampling indicates a gas
composition with 10% CO2 by volume," Beach Energy said.

Beach Energy plans to case and suspend the well as a future producer. A well test will confirm well productivity and provide data for the proposed pipeline to the Otway Gas Plant. Detailed engineering work and regulatory approvals process for the pipeline is already underway, the company said.

"Estimates of potential resource size are not yet defined, with the formation evaluation program still in progress. Beach’s preliminary assessment is that key reservoir parameters are interpreted to be in-line with pre-drill expectations," Beach said.

Beach Energy Managing Director and CEO Matt Kay said:" “To have our first exploration well in the Victorian Otway program deliver a successful result is an excellent outcome for the business.”

"This success enhances our plans to develop more supplies for the East Coast gas market. The Enterprise result also de-risks other nearby prospects, warranting their evaluation as potential future drilling candidates.”

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