With the aim of proving up part of one of the largest accumulations of onshore gas in Australia, totalling 8,700 PJ (8.7 TCF) of P3 gas resources (representing around 62 years’ supply at NSW’s current rate of consumption) the program is focused on PEL 238, near Gunnedah in New South Wales.

Located within the 260sq.km Bohena Fairway, in which nine CBM wells have already been drilled, the five well coal bed methane (CBM) drilling program will target up to 3,700 PJ (3.7 TCF) gas in place within the main Maules Creek and Black Jack CBM production horizons, in which the two main coal seams total 20m to 30m in thickness and all seams total over 50m of coal.

The aim of this drilling program is to prove sufficient proved and probable (1P and 2P) gas reserves to enter into gas sales contracts, reducing NSW’s dependence on interstate supplies.

An initial production pilot will include one horizontal well (Bohena-4L), three new vertical fracced wells (Bohena-9, 10 and 11) in the Bohena Pilot Area, drilling of one new vertical fracced well (Bohena South-1) and a corehole (Bohena South-1C) 4kms south of the Bohena Pilot Area.

All wells will then be placed into test production and monitored as a precursor to an independent re-evaluation of reserves.

“Following the recent disruptions to the supply of gas from SA into NSW it’s clear that the project’s large gas resources lying only a few hundred kilometres from Australia’s largest population centre will be playing a strategic role in the State’s energy future,” said Dennis Morton, the managing director of Eastern Star Gas.

The project is managed by Eastern Star Gas Limited and is owned by the Gunnedah Gas Project Joint Venture comprising Eastern Star Gas 15% and Hillgrove Resources 15% (but with both acquiring up to 32.5%) and Gastar Exploration 70% (but reducing to 35%).