Woodside makes gas find off W. Australia

Woodside Energy Ltd., Perth, has made a natural gas discovery in the Exmouth Plateau, even further offshore than Chevron Corp.’s recently reported Brederode-1 gas find (OGJ Online, Aug. 13, 2010).

Aug. 16, 2010

Rick Wilkinson
OGJ Correspondent

MELBOURNE, Aug. 16 -- Woodside Energy Ltd., Perth, has made a natural gas discovery in the Exmouth Plateau, even further offshore than Chevron Corp.’s recently reported Brederode-1 gas find (OGJ Online, Aug. 13, 2010).

Woodside reported its Alaric-1 wildcat, drilled in permit WA-434-P, just west of Chevron’s WA-364-P (Brederode) permit, intersected a 185-m gross gas column over several zones within the Triassic-age reservoir target.

Initial analysis of drilling fluids suggests the gas could be liquids-rich.

The well is now being deepended to ensure that the full gas column is identified. A program of wireline logging will then be run to recover gas samples before the planned plug and abandon process.

Woodside has 100% of the WA-434-P permit which was awarded in July 2009.

The company has been working hard to prove up additional gas reserves to serve as feedstock for its proposed Trains 2 and 3 of the Pluto LNG Project, although the Alaric discovery is a long way west of the Pluto, or indeed any, existing infrastructure.