HyTerra has green light for drilling of hydrogen, helium well at Nemaha

HyTerra lands Permit to Drill for the Sue Duroche-3 hydrogen and helium well at Nemaha
Sue Duroche-3 is 200m from the historical Sue Duroche-3 well that reported up to 92% hydrogen and 3% helium
The well is one of several prospective wells the company could choose from for its Q3 2024 drill program

Special Report: HyTerra has taken a key step towards drilling the Sue Duroche-3 hydrogen and helium well within its flagship Nemaha project in Kansas with the receipt of the Permit to Drill from the Kansas Corporation Commission.

The Nemaha project covers 12,720 acres of exploration leases in a major industrial and manufacturing hub between Kansas City and Wichita.

This places it close to existing railways, roads, and pipelines that connect it to a long list of potential offtakers nearby, including ethanol and ammonia manufacturers, and petrochemical plants.

HyTerra (ASX:HYT) already has evidence that hydrogen and helium are present within its acreage with historical wells showing occurrences of both gases to peaks of 92% and 3% respectively.

The potential to find naturally occurring hydrogen – also known as white hydrogen – is hugely significant for the company as it could likely find eager offtakers as over 35% of US ammonia – a compound of hydrogen and nitrogen – is produced near its leases.

Not only will this deliver revenue for the company, it will also make an immediate impact on decarbonisation by supplying sectors like ammonia and fertiliser.

These are ‘low hanging fruit’ since the industries are challenging to decarbonise but present an obvious opportunity for HyTerra because unlike speculative markets, they already use hydrogen as part of the production process.

Ammonia fertiliser, for instance, requires large amounts of hydrogen which is currently sourced by cracking fossil fuels.

Helium is a rare gas that has often irreplaceable uses in semiconductor manufacturing, nuclear energy production, solar panels, optic fibre and the cooling of superconducting magnets in MRI scanning machines.

HyTerra, ASX, HYT, Drilling, Well, Green, Light, Kansas, White, Hydrogen — The Sue Duroche-3 prospect. Pic: HyTerra

Route to drilling clearing

The receipt of the Permit to Drill from the regulator sets the stage for the company to drill Sue Duroche-3 – one of an extensive portfolio of drilling candidates being advanced through the permitting stages within its acreage – in Q3 2024.

HYT has staked the well site ~200m north of the historical Sue Duroche-2 that was drilled in 2009 and had reported up to 92% hydrogen and 3% helium.

It sits on the Zeandale High, a prominent structural feature imaged by historical 2D seismic on the crestal parts of the Nemaha Ridge.

The company also has >3,450 acres of owned and operated leases that are geologically contiguous to this well, meaning that any success will have plenty of room for follow-up.

“Securing this drill permit is a crucial milestone. The diversity of geological plays within our 100% owned and operated leases allows us to rank several independent hydrogen and helium prospects for the company’s upcoming exploration program,” executive director Avon McIntyre said.

“That means we can drill the highest ranked ones first. Additionally, after an extensive review, we are assessing multiple vendors for drilling and other operational services for the Q3 2024 drilling program.”