The company said it plans to complete and flow test both the upper and lower gas sands to confirm their productivity, the results of which are expected in the next two to three weeks. If successful, Longtom-3 will be suspended as a future producer.

Nexus said it decided to stop drilling the horizontal well, which intersected a total of 1030m of gross gas sands, to reduce the risk of formation damage to the gas sands through the continued exposure to drilling fluids.

Instead, the company expects the immediate completion across the gas sands intersected in the horizontal well section maximises the likelihood of good flow rates from the planned production test.

Nexus said the key appraisal objectives accomplished by the well to date include:

· Confirming that the major gas sands identified in the Longtom-2 well are continuous in both dip and strike directions.

· A better understanding of the different pressure systems and gas water contacts in each of the five reservoir sands encountered in the field.

· Estimation of permeability in over 1000m of gas sands made from measurement while drilling equipment (to be confirmed through production testing).

· Confirming the connectivity of the different reservoir sands in the field through the acquisition of additional pressure measurements.

· Confirming that seismic amplitude techniques are an effective predictor of the presence of gas sands across the Longtom terrace.