"With drilling to commence on 1 March, Carpathian remains confident that the Ja3a will be completed before the end of the current quarter, as previously advised," said Carpathian managing director Gerald Johnson.
The Janovice gas field was discovered and evaluated under the former Czechoslovakian communist regime. Recoverable reserves were established within the area of the two discovery wells but no production occurred.
The Miocene Karpat sandstone reservoir is divided into two sections by a fault with the deeper section (1,030 metres vertical depth to top of reservoir sandstone) containing recoverable (proved and probable) gas reserves of 1,058 million cubic feet (MMcf).
The shallower section (886 metres vertical depth) contains recoverable reserves of 590 MMcf, while the company believes potential exists for substantially increasing the gas reserves by further drilling. Ja3a is to tap the deeper section of the reservoir and has a proposed total depth of 1100 metres.