Talon and its operating partner have wrapped up drilling of pilot production wells at their Gurvantes XXXV coal seam gas project in Mongolia on time and on budget.

All three wells intersected at least 60m of gassy coal – topping up at 68m in Lucky Fox-3, which is a positive sign both for their ability to flow gas and consistency of gas resources at the project.

Production casing has been successfully run in all three holes over the production interval.

Talon Energy (ASX:TPD) notes that throughout June, work will continue with the installation of pumps and the remaining surface facilities before the pilot well pumps are commissioned and the dewatering process started.

Dewatering, which is a key step required to reduce pressure in the coal seam before gas can be produced in any significant quantities, will be carried out in a controlled manner with first gas breakthrough conservatively expected within one or two months following the wells being placed on pump.

Data gathered from drilling the pilot wells will also be integrated into the overall geological model over the coming weeks to optimise pump speeds and the dewatering process.

Drilling operations at Lucky Fox-3. Pic: TMK Energy.

 

“We are very pleased to report that our 3-well drilling campaign at Gurvantes has been drilled safely, on time and on budget,” managing director Colby Hauser said.

“Having penetrated at least 60m of gassy net coal is an outstanding result for all three wells and bodes well for the subsequent production test which will assess if the project can deliver gas at commercial rates.

“We look forward to the final stages of the Pilot Well Program over the coming months and are optimistic about dewatering the wells and flowing gas to surface.”

Big gas resource

Talon has a 33% interest in the 8,400km2 Gurvantes XXXV project, which is located within what is considered one of the most prospective coal seam gas basins globally.

Adding further to this, the project is located just 20km from Mongolia’s border with China, putting it well within reach of one of the world’s largest consumers of gas.

Gurvantes XXXV currently has a best estimate (2C) Contingent Resource of 1.2 trillion cubic feet of gas, which while substantial covers just the Nariin Sukhait area that is the current subject of drilling.

Additionally, that the intersected coal seams typically have cumulative widths of about 50m or more compares very favourably with the prolific CSG fields in Queensland, which were already capable of producing 5 billion to 6 billion cubic feet of gas per square kilometre from coal seams with widths of between 10m and 15m.

This article was developed in collaboration with Talon Energy, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.

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