A further 6.0 bcf potential resource is estimated to be contained in deeper coal seams beyond the scope of this GIP resource estimate, Planet Gas said.

The company's Oriva Project covers 505 hectares in the Powder River Basin and is made up of two leases, Oriva Throne which is currently in production, and Oriva Federal which is planned for development.

The resource estimate was completed by Dr Jimmy Goolsby of Goolsby, Finley &Associates (GFA) of Casper Wyoming. GFA are considered to be pre-eminent authorities on the CBM geology of the Powder River Basin, providing consulting services to the state’s leading CBM producers and developers. The State of Wyoming has also retained GFA to conduct a study of the Powder River Basin’s CBM reserve potential.

The GIP resource is based on a volumetric analysis of the six Wasatch and Fort Union coal seams’ actual or projected thicknesses using 32 hectare (80 acre) blocks, and a gas content factor, depending upon the depth of the coal seam, between 10 and 85 standard cubic feet per ton.

The gas content factor is a well-defined estimation based on a published study by GFA completed on behalf of the State of Wyoming, Planet Gas said. The state has dictated a standard CBM well location spacing unit of 32 hectare blocks, and maintains a publicly available database consisting of geophysical logs on all completed CBM wells that once culled and correlated is an invaluable asset for resource estimates.

Goolsby also estimated the deeper multiple Moyer coal seams could contain an additional potential resource of about 6 bcf in the Oriva Project and the area surrounding the Oriva Project could contain shallow sands containing trapped natural gas derived from the adjacent CBM coals, which might further increase the GIP resource.

The Oriva Throne lease currently has 15 wells – three nested wells at five well pad locations – producing about 12,000 mcf of CBM per month from the Felix, Anderson and Wall coal seams.

“This production rate is expected to increase to 50,000 Mcf per month as the Wall coal seam (the deepest of the producing seams) is further dewatered,” \Planet Gas said.

“Recent pump replacements and cleanouts on two Wall wells have increased dewatering rates and early indications are that gas production is increasing in line with expectations.”