Some in the market reckon it was because investors were expecting a bigger oil discovery. Instead they got 110m gas column and "only" 23m of oil, which translates roughly into 50 to 100 million barrels, which is not a bad find in anybody's language.
In a great impersonation of Paul Keating when he was Treasurer of this great country, Hardman Resources boss Ted Ellyard lashed out at the market by saying it "does not understand it (the business), as it usually doesn't." And keep your eyes peeled for a Hardman placement in the near future.
Hardman's partner in Mauritania, Woodside, has also had a busy week. Apart from drilling in Africa, winning environmental awards and sub-leasing office place, the oil and gas giant wants to expand abroad without ruffling the feathers of its majority stakeholder Shell too much that is.
Woodside is said to be looking at number of targets including the assets of Westport Resources, who are busy in the Rocky Mountains, Gulf of Mexico and the Gulf Coast. The Perth-based company is also said to be looking at the assets of a European outfit, Preussag Energie, which are located in more riskier areas such as South America, the Mediterranean, Middle East and Asia.
Closer to home, Stuart and Beach Petroleum said they will shortly begin drilling their third Acrasia well in South Australia's Cooper Basin. Beach will also further expand its Cooper Basin after a farmin agreement with Great Artesian Oil & Gas.
Santos and Strike Oil have started drilling their second Casino well in the Otway Basin, offshore Victoria. The JV partners want to test the commerciality of the first Casino discovery, which is said to contain about 300 billion cubic feet of gas.
The Harriet Joint Venture plugged and abandoned the Victoria-2 well and in the process dashed any hopes there may have been significant downdip stratigraphic extension to the Victoria Field, in the Carnarvon Basin.
While the above companies are busy in the field, Federal Resources Minister Ian Macfarlane would like to see more of the same. Responding to statistics that show expenditure on petroleum exploration declining in the June quarter, the Minister has decided to release six new petroleum exploration permits off the coasts of WA and NT.
In general news, a high-powered mission including some of Perth's biggest political and business heavy hitters set out for China to take advantage of the recent LNG contract win to drum up more business for Australia's resource and petroleum industries.
Speaking of governments, amid claims that it forced down the price of LNG down in the China deal, the Howard Government looks set to make a killing on the latest rise in oil price because of the Petroleum Resources Rent Tax.
Staying with petrol prices, embattled retailer Coles Myer will join forces with oil giant Shell to give shoppers cheaper fuel. No doubt it will come in handy now that the price of crude has hit $US30 a barrel with rumours it may hit $US100 a barrel if the upcoming war with Iraq spins out of control.
All of this might have been good news for the Australian bio-fuels industry in this country. However, the use of ethanol as an additive in petrol sparked a bitter row between politicians, the oil industry, sugar millers and has even caused a spat with Brazil which is angry over Australia's decision to impose an excise on ethanol and subsidise the local industry. So much for "free trade".
If bio-fuel won't do then we can look to oil made from shale rock in Queensland. An independent report commissioned by Southern Pacific Petroleum says oil sands are a new hydrocarbon resource in the making for many nations, including our own. However, its is highly unlikely that Greenpeace will be seeing things the same way.
Overseas, all eyes were on the Middle East. Nervousness over an imminent American attack on Iraq saw oil prices climb to over $US30 a barrel, however OPEC decided to leave its production quotas unchanged.
US oil firms will be hoping for a lightning victory over Saddam as it means access to that country's huge oil reserves. Britain's Guardian newspaper says US and European oil firms have already started jockeying for position in a post-Saddam Iraq.
With the Middle East in turmoil, Western oil companies have started to look at the Caspian Sea. Their job was made easier after Russia and Azerbaijan made an agreement on carving up oil reserves under the Caspian Sea - said to contain about 50 billion barrels.
