Highlights and trends in exploration 2009
Gordon Wakelin-KingWakelin Associates
The APPEA Journal 50(1) 113-120 https://doi.org/10.1071/AJ09008
Published: 2010
Abstract
2009 saw an overall decrease from high activity from 2008, levelling off in the December quarter as the economy stabilised. Unsurprisingly, most activity was in offshore Western Australia and on coal seam methane (CSM) in Queensland. Highlights include: good results in the Carnarvon and Browse basins for Western Australian operators, interest in Karoon and Conoco-Phillips’ enigmatic Poseidon project, over 180 CSM exploration wells in Queenslandd, and a relatively busy year for Tasmania.
Western Australian seismic acquisition approached 10,000 km of 2D and 25,000 km2 of 3D for 38* wells and success rate around 50%. South Australia saw the highest conventional onshore drilling and seismic activity, with good results for 17 wells, while other states saw low activity in this sector. Victoria saw one offshore exploration well and no seismic. Tasmania also saw no new seismic, but saw four exploration wells and encouragement at Rockhopper–1. CSM is picking up in South Australia, and New South Wales saw continued high CSM activity in a historically low-activity region.
High success rates suggest two trends: explorers finding value in 3D seismic, and a ‘flight to quality’ as operating costs and poorer access to capital reinforce risk aversion among operators. Elsewhere, geothermal energy helped small cap investors satisfy their appetite for risk outside of the petroleum industry, and results will be watched with great interest.
*Numbers are from early public and departmental statistics and may be revised.
Gordon Wakelin-King graduated with Honours in geology from the University of Queensland in 1983. He has worked as a petroleum geologist in the Eromanga Basin in Queensland, the Proterozoic in the NT, and the Mesozoic in Victoria with occasional offshore stints to the Carnarvon Basin and the Timor Sea. Among a wide-ranging career he worked for Pacific Oil and Gas during the initial phase of CSG exploration at Peat in Queensland and for the (then) farminee operators of the Narrabri CSG project, and remains delighted at the results achieved by others in those fields. Gordon is a consultant based in Melbourne, Victoria and provides operations and exploration services to petroleum and geothermal companies. He is President of the PESA Victoria/Tasmania branch. gordon@wakelinassociates.com.au |
