Successful drilling of Amungee NW-1H horizontal well

Falcon Oil & Gas Ltd has announced that drilling operations have successfully concluded on the Amungee NW-1H horizontal well. The well was drilled to a total measured depth of 3808 m, including 1100 m horizontal section in the "B Shale" interval of the Middle Velkerri Formation, 100 m more than originally planned. For Falcon the results obtained to date are very encouraging.

Highlights of preliminary results from the Amungee NW-1H horizontal exploration well:

• The Amungee NW-1H well, the first horizontal well drilled in the Beetaloo basin, illustrates the advancement and acceleration of the exploration programme.
• Favourable shale properties extending from the Amungee NW-1 vertical well qualify the area as a prospective and laterally extensive sweet spot in the north of the Beetaloo basin.
• Excellent gas shows throughout indicate the likelihood of high levels of gas saturation across the entire horizontal section.
• Consistent lithology, clay mineral composition, and total gas readings were recorded throughout the drilled "B Shale" section, and these provides a very solid platform for multi-stage hydraulic fracturing planned for 2016.

The Beetaloo JV Partners' decision to target the "B Shale" interval of the Middle Velkerri Formation twelve months ahead of schedule has proved fully justified with the well successfully fulfilling all of its exploration objectives.

The Amungee NW-1H well will be cased, cemented and suspended until the performance of the multi-stage hydraulic fracturing planned for 2016.

The JV's attention will now focus on an in-depth shale evaluation program and petrophysical analysis of all the technical data gathered on the three wells drilled to date. This includes data obtained from the first Diagnostic Fracture Injection Testing (DFIT) successfully carried out on the Kalala S-1 well earlier this month.

Rig 185 will be "warm stacked" on location in the Beetaloo basin allowing for an early commencement of the 2016 drilling program. The cost of stacking Rig 185 will be borne by Origin and Sasol with no financial impact on Falcon.

Philip O'Quigley, CEO of Falcon commented: "This continues to be an exciting time for Falcon with continued positive developments for the Beetaloo Joint Venture. Experiencing excellent gas shows during the drilling of Amungee NW-1H demonstrates the high level of gas saturation in the entire horizontal section, which is a strong indication of the potential prospectivity of our Beetaloo acreage. The stacking of rig 185 demonstrates further commitment from our JV partners Origin and Sasol, and will enable us to commence the 2016 drilling and exploration program at the earliest possible opportunity.”

"The ongoing in-depth shale evaluation program and petrophysical analysis should provide further positive evidence of the high prospectivity of the Beetaloo basin. This should provide the JV with the technical knowledge to best plan and design the 2016 program which will include a further two vertical wells and the multi-stage hydraulic fracturing of the Amungee NW-1H horizontal well. A further update on this technical evaluation will be provided to the market in due course," continued O’Quigley.

Diagnostic Fracture Injection Tests

The JV partners have agreed to expand the exploration program by introducing Diagnostic Fracture Injection Tests (DFITs) on all of the vertical wells drilled in 2015 and 2016. DFIT is the most adequate tool to obtain reservoir quality data, such as pressure and permeability, and completion quality data, all pertaining to the prospectivity of the Middle Velkerri shale gas play.

Edited from press release by Angharad Lock

Read the article online at: https://www.oilfieldtechnology.com/drilling-and-production/18112015/successful-drilling-of-amungee-nw-1h-horizontal-well-1755/