Comet Ridge (ASX:COI) has successfully completed a $5.3 million placement to institutional investors at $0.125 per share to fund its gas exploration program in Queensland.
The placement was significantly oversubscribed with strong support from new institutional investors.
Proceeds from the placement will be used to fund the joint venture exploration program to deliver a material upgrade to the gas reserves at the Mahalo assets in Queensland's Bowen Basin.
The Mahalo joint venture is jointly owned by Comet Ridge (40%), Santos (30%), and Australia Pacific LNG (30%).
Field planning and technical work have been underway since work program approval in April. Field operations are expected to commence before the end of July.
The program is focused on moving 3P (proven, probable and possible) reserves over into the 2P (proven and probable) reserves category as quickly as possible.
The East Coast gas story has continued to dominate headlines during Q1 2017, with the federal government intervening to ensure security of supply to the domestic market.
This has put a strong focus on available reserves and resources in Queensland to meet the expanding east coast LNG and domestic gas demand requirement.
Comet Ridge currently has 219 petajoules of 3P reserves at Mahalo.
The company expects 2017 exploration work program to add significant economic reserves to each of the joint venture participant’s portfolio.