Eden announced today it had this week completed the prospecting drill hole, Chowilla-1, to its first stage depth of 512m.

The company will now allow temperatures in the hole to return to stable equilibrium conditions – possibly taking up to two months – following the disruption caused by the drilling activity.

Eden will then undertake measurements to determine the temperature gradient over the well’s entire surface to bottom-of-hole length.

This first-stage heat flow estimate is a key determinant of whether the ground temperatures will continue to warm up to commercially attractive levels if the hole is deepened in any subsequent drilling stages.

Chowilla-1 is part of Eden Energy’s two geothermal licence areas in the Riverland – GEL175 and GEL176 – located 40km northeast of Renmark, which lie in the geological feature known as the Renmark-Tararra Trough.

The well is close to infrastructure and grid powerlines, including the main transmission lines running to Adelaide and Broken Hill. Eden says this enhances the area's commercial potential for geothermal energy, particularly for a local and large-scale water desalination project.