Empire Energy Group Ltd (ASX:EEG, OTC:EEGUF) managing director Alex Underwood sits down with Proactive’s Jonathan Jackson after the company secured Ensign Rig 965 to drill the Carpentaria-5H well on exploration permit (EP) 187, part of the Carpentaria Project in the Beetaloo Basin, Northern Territory.
The company has also contracted Halliburton to conduct fracturing and stimulation activities using a 44,000 hydraulic horsepower (HHP) fracking fleet, significantly more powerful than previous operations at Carpentaria. The drilling will target a 3,000-metre horizontal section in the Velkerri B Shale with 60 fracture stimulation stages.
Empire expects to begin drilling in late October 2024.
Pilot production sales are planned for mid-2025, with flow test results anticipated in Q1 2025. The company aims to install surface facilities to facilitate the sale of test gas into the McArthur River Pipeline.
These developments follow a successful capital raising and the progress of design and engineering works. Empire will use a 5.5-inch casing to enhance fracture stimulation rates, potentially increasing productivity. Surface facility installation is on track for Q2 2025, subject to regulatory approvals, which are well advanced.