GOT GAS: Small caps have major news coming in 2025

Welcome to Got Gas, where Stockhead senior energy journalist Bevis Yeo gives you the lowdown on the news and insights you need to know in the ASX energy sector. This time, he highlights several companies with potentially significant impending news.

Natural gas will continue to be front and centre of any discussion about Australia’s energy mix with the same concerns about supply shortages that made headlines in 2024 extending into the new year.

Without divine intervention or the sudden discovery and development of a major gas find, the Australian Energy Market Operator’s warnings remain very much in force.

It had previously predicted that eastern Australia could experience shortfalls on extreme peak demand days from 2025, small seasonal supply gaps from 2026, and the controlled reduction of electricity supplied to homes and business during periods of peak demand from 2028.

This sorry state of affairs does offer opportunities for junior explorers.

Companies operating in frontier basins or the edges of established gas producing regions could well help address at least some of the expected gas shortages, meaning that they will have little difficulty selling any of their gas output.

ASX juniors operating in Australia worth a watch

With this in mind, here are some ASX-listed gas plays with operations in Australia that have intriguing news pending.

Omega Oil & Gas (ASX:OMA) will flow test its Canyon-1H horizontal well in Queensland’s Taroom Trough during the current quarter.

The well had recorded strong gas shows and indications of condensate throughout the 822m long horizontal section of the targeted Permian Canyon sandstone, which provides greater surface area for increased flow rates.

While commercial flow rates are hardly a certainty, the signs are promising, particularly since Shell has enjoyed significant successes with its wells in the same region and has reportedly committed to a long-term development program.

Since changing its name to better reflect its broader focus on energy, QPM Energy (ASX:QPM) has been progressing initiatives that will leverage its producing Moranbah gas project in Queensland.

Its most recent move was to acquire the 12.8MW Moranbah Power Station, allowing it to stop buying the 3MW of electricity it needs to power the gas field, reducing field electricity costs by >$500,000 a month – or about 5% of its monthly operating costs – whilst increasing revenue through dispatch of excess electricity generation to the grid.

It will also enable the company to use increased quantities of waste coal mine gas as fuel for the power station.

Besides the expected increase in gas production from the seven new lateral wells, QPM plans to further increase its gas reserves and production by working with coal mine operators to secure additional third-party gas supply and evaluating regional consolidation opportunities.

Vintage Energy (ASX:VEN) and Metgasco (ASX:MEL) are currently reviewing further options to enhance production from the existing wells at the Vali and Odin fields within the Cooper Basin Southern Flank.

This most immediate change is likely to come from the removal of scale accumulation that has been found to impede production and interfere with accurate metering.

Scale removal at the Odin-1 well had previously increased production by 2.3 times, highlighting the benefits of this process.

Over in the Northern Territory, Tamboran Resources (ASX:TBN) will soon complete drilling of its Shenandoah South 3H horizontal well in the Beetaloo Basin.

This will have a usable 3048m horizontal section for stimulation with data collected during drilling already demonstrating strong gas shows and a continuation of high quality.

It is also preparing to carry out a stimulation program of up to 45 stages at the Shenandoah South-2H ST1 well following the casing of the horizontal section to 1700m.

Over the rest of 2025, the company plans to focus on drilling the remaining development wells for its Shenandoah South pilot program, which will deliver gas into the territory.

Meanwhile, Empire Energy (ASX:EEG) plans to fracture stimulate and production test its Carpentaria-5H well in Q2 2025.

The entirety of the 3310m horizontal section was placed within the target Velkerri-B shale with strong gas shows observed throughout.

Gas production from this well will be sold under the company’s 10-year binding sales agreement with the NT government to supply 25 terajoules of gas per day from the Carpentaria pilot project from mid-2025.

Over in Western Australia, gas producers Strike Energy (ASX:STX) is working to bring more of its gas discoveries into production under its Gas Acceleration Strategy.

First off is likely to be the West Erregulla field in the Perth Basin in order to benefit from the WA Government’s rule allowing onshore gas projects to export 20% of their total production.

STX is also preparing to take a final investment decision for the South Erregulla field as well as production testing of the Walyering East-1 well.

Asian gas news

Heading further afield, Conrad Asia Energy (ASX:CRD) expects to conclude the farm-down of its interest in the Duyung production sharing contract in the Natuna Sea offshore Indonesia.

It also expects to finalise financing and make a final investment decision for the Mako gas field within the Duyung PSC to enable first gas production in late 2026.

Separately, the company will work with Indonesia’s PT Perusahaan Gas Negara to further advance the small-scale liquefied natural gas opportunity for its Aceh gas assets.

In parallel, it is seeking potential farm-in partners for its Offshore North West Aceh and Offshore South West Aceh PSCs.

At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While Conrad Asia Energy, Omega Oil & Gas and QPM Energy are Stockhead advertisers, they did not sponsor this article.