Initial measurements of gas desorption from the coals produced encouraging results for the Styx River-1 wildcat, Arrow (100%) said yesterday.

The well, 140 kilometres north of Rockhampton, was drilled to 660 metres, intersecting 14m of net coal in the Styx Coal Measures.

It follows the Boyne River-2 well near Gladstone, which found 95m of net coal and flowed 60,000 cubic feet of gas per day from a 50m-thick coal seam.

Arrow said Styx River-1 and Boyne River-2 showed the potential of its coastal Queensland tenements, and appraisal programs for the discoveries are being designed.

But bad weather, has caused drilling and construction delays further south at the Kogan North Development project PL 194, 40 kilometres from Dalby township in the Surat Basin (Arrow 50%, CS Energy 50%).

Kogan North will supply four petajoules of gas a year for 15 years to CS Energy’s Swanbank ‘E’ power plant near Ipswich in south-east Queensland.

The delays could hold up the first gas sales from the project, until November, but the supply agreement would be met, Arrow said.

Pumps have been installed at four wells at the project and another 10 will be fitted after a rig arrives later this week, Arrow said.

South of Kogan North, a production well will be drilled at ATP 790/PLA 230 in Daandine Field after a rig arrives this week.

Planning for a power generation project fuelled by gas from the tenement (Arrow 100%) is currently in its advanced stages, the company said.

The severe weather in Queensland also prevented rig access for two weeks to the Tipton West Project (Arrow 80%, Comet Ridge 20%), 20km south of Dalby.

A pump is being installed at Tipton-17. This well has been drilled 4km north of the pilot to prove more gas reserves, Arrow said.