Arc said wireline log interpretation was ambiguous as to the well's flow potential. As a result, the company decided to run a DST for information on pressures, production rate and possible formation damage.

The DST was a straddle test, with the gas flowing at 140psi on a 3/8 inch choke. The company is now preparing to run production casing in the well.

“Snottygobble looks more like a sniffle than a sneeze, but we have flowed gas, and proved the trap exists and the mapping of the 3D data set is valid,” Arc managing director, Eric Streitberg, said.

“Snottygobble was also the deepest well we have drilled so far with this rig and we were at the limit of its capacity. This was also the first time we have done an open hole DST with this rig, and it was of a high-pressure gas zone.”

Streitberg said the Arc-Origin Energy joint venture would now pause its onshore drilling program, to fully assess the results of Snottygobble and its other wells drilled to date. The partners would also mobilise a larger rig.

“When we then restart the onshore drilling around the middle of the year, we will be able to target the best prospects with the appropriate rig,” he said.

“We are also looking forward to the start of the offshore exploration program as soon as the Cliff Head development drilling program is finished.”

The company would decide the future of the well once the production casing has been run and all data from the DST analysed, Streitberg said.

Century Rig 11 will then be used to conduct a workover of the Xyris 1 well to replace the production tubing.

Arc drilled the well as a sole-risk project after L1 partner Origin energy opted out.

Snottygobble-1 targeted a fault bounded closure gas prospect, with P50 potential recoverable reserves of about 20 billion cubic feet of gas. Arc said the reservoir development was assessed as the principal risk.

Partners in L1 and L2 (excluding the Dongara, Mondarra and Yardarino fields) are Arc Energy Limited – (operator and 50%) and Origin Energy (50%).