Buru Energy Ltd (ASX:BRU) has updated the market on work at its 50%-owned Currajong 1 exploration well in northwest WA’s Canning Basin.
Last month, the oil and gas explorer and producer set the first casing on the well — the first in Buru’s broader Canning Basin exploration campaign — after it spudded on July 1.
So far, a 9⅝-inch, or 244-millimetre, casing string has been installed to a measured depth of 1,950 metres and successfully pressure tested.
The well has been drilled ahead in an 8½-inch, or 216-millimetre, hole to a total measured depth of 2,340 metres, and wireline logs have been acquired over the open-hole section.
"Encouraging results"
Buru executive chairman Eric Streitberg said: “The results so far at Currajong 1 are very encouraging, and we look forward to the production test to confirm the interpretation of the well results to date.
“The detection of natural hydrogen in the well also validates our view that this could represent a valuable future resource.
“The next well in the exploration program, Rafael 1, is targeting a geologically distinct formation to Currajong 1 with significantly larger potential resources and we are very much looking forward to drilling that prospect.”
Geological results
According to the company, wireline logs indicate porous zones with interpreted oil saturation at the top of the Ungani Dolomite equivalent section and potential oil-bearing zones are also present in a lower dolomite section equivalent to the interval seen in the nearby Praslin 1 well.
Wireline log interpretation needs to be validated by flow testing, and the joint venture has therefore agreed to run 7-inch, or 178-millimetre, casing and perform a cased hole test of the interpreted reservoir sections.
Specialised hydrogen mudgas detection
Besides this, a specialised hydrogen mudgas detection unit was installed on the rig for this well.
This unit detected a zone of up to 6% hydrogen in mudgas over an interval of around 6 metres from 2,014 metres measured depth. Encouragingly, this confirms the presence of natural hydrogen in the Canning Basin.
Forward plan
The Ensign 963 rig will be released from the Currajong 1 well upon the completion of the 7-inch casing installation, which is expected by the end of this week.
The rig will then be mobilised to the Rafael 1 drilling location, with the mobilisation expected to take approximately two weeks to complete.
The joint venture will now plan the scope and timing of the Currajong 1 testing program, to be undertaken as soon as practicable.