QGC said the pilot development program is designed to provide production information that will allow it to establish commercial reserves for sale into the Queensland gas market.

Located within 15 km of the Roma to Brisbane gas pipeline, QGC said Berwyndale South in ATP 632P (QGC 100% interest) will address a gas resource estimated at some 990 billion cubic feet.

"Pump testing at Berwyndale-1 and the core analysis from Berwyndale-2 confirmed that the coal measures in the area have substantial gas content, good permeability and flow gas when the seams are dewatered," the company said.

The first well, Berwyndale South-1 was spudded on 14 June and reached its objective on 17 June. Logging has confirmed that the well had intersected 27 metres of coal.

QGC said the pilot will consist of a five-well development with associated gas gathering and water handling systems. The wells will then be completed in each of the major coal seams of the Juandah interval.

"They will be operated together with the objective of efficiently dewatering a large volume of coal and measuring water and gas delivery rates under production conditions. The well spacing for the pilot is designed to demonstrate stabilised gas flow rates within six months," the company said.

Drilling and fracture stimulation of QGC's first pilot development, Aberdeen, was successfully completed on 15 June. The wells of this pilot project are presently being equipped with pumps and production tubing.

Dewatering operations will commence as the wells are progressively brought into production over the next two to three weeks, QGC said.