ADX spuds high-impact Austrian wildcat gas well

ADX Energy has begun its probing of sandstone reservoirs with the potential for 21 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of gas after spudding its high-impact Lichtenberg-1 (LICHT-1) gas well in Upper Austria, with wildcat drilling set to dive 2900m in 30 days.

Drilling at the well, where ADX will eventually hold a 50 per cent interest as the project operator, was launched 12 days ago. LICHT-1 lies in the company’s western ADX-AT-I licence area and is being drilled using the same RED Drilling & Services GmbH E-202 rig that was recently employed to work over the highly successful Anshof-2A discovery well, 60km to the east.

Management says that as of yesterday, the 8½-inch hole had reached a depth of 1288m and was paused to condition the well before continuing drilling. Earlier, the drill bit had etched out a 12¼-inch hole to a depth of 400m, before being cased and cemented in place.

The wildcat’s primary target is an Upper Oligocene sandstone reservoir, although there are two additional shallower reservoirs that will be intersected on the way down and show similar promise. The sandstone reservoirs in the region have shown promising productivity in nearby wells, with potential gas production rates exceeding 10 million standard cubic feet per day (MMSCFPD).

The well is expected to encounter its first gas-bearing Oligocene formations at around 2000m, with the main target reservoir starting at 2500m.

Late last year, ADX farmed out a 50 per cent stake in its ADX-AT-I licence to European industry giant MND Austria for €4.5 million (AU$7.35 million) in exploration drilling funding and €450,000 (AU$735,000) in back costs. The area includes two gas exploration prospects – the current LICHT-1 target that has an estimated best recoverable resource of 21Bcf of gas and IRR, which is estimated to hold 38Bcf of gas with the potential for up to 79Bcf.

Both prospects were identified through seismic data, showing amplitude variations with offset (AVO) anomalies, indicative of gas-filled reservoirs. But drilling is necessary to confirm the presence of hydrocarbons.

Should the LICHT-1 well prove successful, it would pave the way for further exploration and development in eight nearby prospects, including the IRR, GOLL, HERR, and STOET fields – all of which are covered by the same high-quality 3D seismic data. Additionally, with pipelines just 5km away, any gas discovery could make development quick and cost-effective.

ADX is rapidly proving that the Upper Austrian region is rich pickings for oil-and-gas explorers. With the Anshof field producing almost 300 barrels of oil equivalent per day (BoEPD) and a further well undergoing appraisal, the company also boasts a recent discovery at its Welchau-1, which is now awaiting flow tests.

A discovery at LICHT-1 would not only be the cherry on the cake for ADX after a successful year, but it would also open up the tantalising prospect of significantly de-risking future targets with similar geology in the immediate area.

With Austria completely reliant on imported gas, both the government and eagle-eyed oil-and-gas punters alike will likely be keeping a close watch for the company’s news flow in the next fortnight.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@wanews.com.au