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Elixir Energy Limited (“Elixir” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide an operations update on its 100% owned Grandis project located adjacent to the Wallumbilla gas hub in Queensland.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Lorelle Sandstone successfully stimulated and cleaned up
- Computer models based on the data acquired during testing indicates the Lorelle Sandstone alone could produce a commercial flow rate1
- Contractor scheduling and other operational issues have led to a small delay in the rest of the program
Following the recent successful free-flowing test on the Lorelle Sandstone, Elixir advises that this key formation has now been successfully stimulated. The zone was flowed back overnight to clean out the stage, and again flowed gas to surface with slugs of proppant debris and stimulation fluid as expected.
Gas flow from Stage 1 Lorelle Sandstone post stimulation
Data acquired during the Lorelle Sandstone flow periods has been used to predict the initial gas flow rate and ultimate recovery for each well from this lowermost zone. Elixir’s technical and economic modelling1 indicates the Lorelle Sandstone alone could produce a commercial flow rate of gas, with the breakeven commercial initial flowrate being estimated at 2.5 million cubic feet per day1.
This commerciality threshold is strongly underpinned by the location of the Grandis Project only a few tens of kilometres from: gas pipeline infrastructure connecting to domestic and international gas markets; existing and proposed local gas-fired power stations; a commercial gas hub into which spot sales can be made at high gas prices; etc. Accordingly, plans for a staged development are already underway, including engaging with gas offtakers with interests in the region.
Since the stimulation and flow-back of the Lorelle Sandstone, Elixir has sustained a number of logistical and other operational delays. After successfully isolating the Lorelle Sandstone with a bridge plug to proceed with the next stimulation stage, the setting mechanism became lodged in the hole requiring remedial activity. This delay has resulted in the full stimulation program not being able to be completed before the hard deadline for certain equipment to leave the site to meet commitments with another operator.
Stimulation equipment on location at Daydream-2
Accordingly, Elixir has demobilized at Daydream-2 and will re-commence the stimulation program in a month or so. This will ensure that the program can be executed as planned and there are no negatives for the ultimate program except for this time delay. Negotiations with the relevant sub- contractors are in hand and a more precise timetable is expected to be finalized shortly.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Elixir Energy, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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Elixir Energy
Overview
Elixir Energy (ASX:EXR) is a gas exploration and development company currently focused on its portfolio of natural gas assets in Queensland, Australia and Mongolia. As an early mover in both areas, Elixir Energy has been the first company ever to free-flow gas from the deep Taroom Trough in Queensland and flow gas of any description in Mongolia.
Elixir Energy’s Grandis Gas project in Queensland is located in the Taroom Trough in the Southern Bowen Basin, where Australia’s premier physical and commercial gas hub – Wallumbilla – is immediately adjacent. Market factors are now driving new rounds of drilling in the Taroom Trough contributing to its reputation as an emerging energy super basin with major electricity as well as gas infrastructure.
A successful free-flowing test was conducted on the Lorelle Sandstone and has indicated it could produce a commercial flow rate of gas, with the breakeven commercial initial flow rate estimated at 2.5 million cubic feet per day.
Gas flow from Stage 1 Lorelle Sandstone post stimulation
Elixir Energy’s Nomgon coal-bed methane (CBM) project is located in Mongolia.
The Nomgon CBM project is in the South Gobi region of Mongolia and on the Chinese/Mongolian border. The ideal location of the asset provides access to excellent infrastructure, including planned pipelines and local mines as customers. The Nomgon project includes a CBM pilot production plant, which flowed gas in its early stages and is now moving to progressively de-water with a view to building up a sustained gas flow rate.
The company is led by a highly experienced team with direct histories in Queensland, Australia and Mongolia and expertise in the natural resources industry, community engagement and working with government stakeholders.
Company Highlights
- Elixir Energy (ASX:EXR) is an exploration and development company with energy assets in Australia and Mongolia, targeting natural gas and renewable energy/hydrogen.
- The company’s Grandis Gas project in Queensland is located in an established gas and oil region, with exceptional access to existing infrastructure and high gas prices.
- The region is currently hosting multi-operator activity, including by Shell.
- Elixir has discovered a deep free-flowing gas zone in Grandis – the first of its kind.
- The company was also the first to flow natural gas in Mongolia, pioneering production in the country.
- A management team with a wide range of expertise in the natural resources sector provides leadership for maximising the value of Elixir Energy’s assets.
Key Projects
Grandis Gas Project
The company’s asset in Queensland, Australia, covers approximately 1,000 square kilometers in an established oil and gas province. The project is well-suited for cost-effective transportation to domestic and international gas markets.
Project Highlights:
- Strong Local Infrastructure: The region's long history of oil and gas production has resulted in a robust infrastructure, including gas transportation and electricity transmission access – and community support for the industry.
- Adjacent to Current and Proposed Pipelines: The asset is located close to existing – and proposed gas pipelines to assist in efficient and low-cost transportation as production commences.
- Impressive Initial Flow Test Results: After a successful suite of DFITs, free-flowing test on the Lorelle Sandstone has been successfully stimulated. Elixir’s technical and economic modeling indicates the Lorelle Sandstone alone could produce a commercial flow rate of gas, with the breakeven commercial initial flow rate estimated at 2.5 million cubic feet per day.
Daydream-2 Lorelle Sandstone Flow Testing*
Nomgon CBM Project
Elixir Energy’s 100-percent-owned coal-bed methane (CBM) project is ideally located in the South Gobi region of Mongolia. This location gives the asset access to robust local infrastructure and close access to Chinese energy markets – the world’s largest.
Project Highlights:
- CBM Pilot Project In Production: The pilot plant passed a key production milestone of 200,000 square cubic feet per day in its early stages. Water production has progressed since these early flows with a view to de-pressuring the CBM reservoir, leading to sustained gas flows.
- District-scale Asset: The Nomgon project covers a significant 30,000 square kilometers in Mongolia. Initial exploration campaigns have been promising and indicate the potential for the asset to become a significant producer of regional energy markets.
Management Team
Richard Cottee - Non-executive Chairman
Richard Cottee was appointed as the non-executive chairman of the company on April 29, 2019. Cottee was the managing director of coal-seam-gas(CSG)-focused Queensland Gas Company (QGC) during its growth from a $20-million market capitalization junior explorer through to its acquisition by BG Group for $5.7 billion. QGC’s CSG assets are now operated by Shell and produce gas that is sold to China and other LNG markets.
Originally a lawyer, Cottee has spent the vast majority of his career in senior executive roles in the energy industry, including as CEO at CS Energy, NRG Europe, Central Petroleum and Nexus Energy. A 32-year veteran of the industry, Cottee is a strong business development professional and a graduate of The University of Queensland.
Neil Young - Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer
Neil Young was appointed to the board of Elixir on December 14, 2018, as its chief executive officer. Young has more than 20 years of experience in senior management positions in the upstream and downstream parts of the energy sector, focusing on business development, new ventures, gas marketing and general commercial functions. He has worked for a range of companies in the UK and Australia, including EY, Tarong Energy and Santos. Young founded Golden Horde Ltd in 2011 to explore gas on the Chinese border in Mongolia. He has also developed various new ventures in other countries including Kazakhstan, Japan and the USA. Young has an M.A. (Hons) joint degree in economics/politics from the University of Edinburgh.
Stephen Kelemen - Non-executive Director
Stephen Kelemen was appointed as the non-executive director of the company on May 6, 2019. Kelemen led Santos’ coal seam gas (CSG) team from its inception in 2004 and drove the growth in this area that allowed Santos to become one of Australia’s leading CSG companies.
An engineering graduate from Adelaide University, Kelemen served Santos for 38 years in multiple technical and leadership roles.
Kelemen is currently an adjunct professor at the University of Queensland’s Centre for Coal Seam Gas and also acts as a non-executive director on the boards of Galilee Energy (ASX:GLL) and Advent Energy.
Anna Sloboda - Non-executive Director
Anna Sloboda was appointed as the non-executive director of the company on October 1, 2020. Sloboda is a joint Belarusian/Australian citizen and has more than 20 years of experience in corporate finance, and in developing junior resource companies operating around the world.
Sloboda is currently an executive director of Red Citadel Resources Pty Ltd, a privately owned mineral resources exploration company with a range of projects in Africa and South America.
She also serves as an advisory committee member, maritime archaeology, at the Western Australian Museum.
Previously she was a co-founder of Trans-Tasman Resources and in that capacity had substantial experience in dealing with Chinese off-takers and partners. Other prior employers include Lehman Brothers, Clough and Curtin University.
Sloboda has a Master of Economics from Belarusian University and an executive MBA from Melbourne Business School.
Victoria Allinson - Company Secretary and Chief Financial Officer
Victoria Allinson is a fellow of The Association of Certified Chartered Accountants, a fellow of the Governance Institute of Australia and an NSX-nominated advisor. She has more than 30 years of accounting and auditing experience, including senior accounting positions in a number of listed companies and was an audit manager for Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. Allinson has gained professional experience while living and working in both Australia and the United Kingdom.
Her previous experience has included being company secretary and CFO for a number of listed companies, including ASX-listed: Kiland, Safety Medical Products, Marmota Limited, Centrex Metals, Adelaide Energy, Enterprise Energy NL, and Island Sky Australia as well as several unlisted companies.
Quarterly Activities Report for the Period Ended 31 March 2024
HIGHLIGHTS
- Daydream-2 successfully flowed from the Lorelle Sandstone without stimulation
- Very material increase in prospective resources in deep coals
- Analysis undertaken post end of quarter indicates the Lorelle alone could produce a commercial flow rate
- Daydream-2 program remains fully funded with current cash equivalent held of $11.9M
MANGAGING DIRECTOR’S REPORT TO SHAREHOLDERS FOR THE QUARTER
Following the drilling of the Daydream-2 well at the end of the December quarter, the March quarter has been one of intense analysis and preparation for the next phase of the Grandis appraisal program.
Just after the end of the quarter, that phase kicked off with the successful flowing of gas from the Lorelle Sandstone at ~4,200 metres – critically, without stimulation, which is a first for the Taroom Trough.1
This activity is occurring at a time of now widespread recognition that the East Coast Australian gas market faces imminent supply shortfalls, prices are high and expected to stay high, and growing international geo-political tensions put a premium on LNG supplies from stable countries like Australia.
Daydream-2 Lease during 2nd flow period of Lorelle Sandstone
The drilling of the Daydream-2 well late in 2023 finished up with a unexpected but very pleasant surprise – gas free flowing from a formation at a depth of 4,200 metres (called the Lorelle sandstone) – something not encountered in the Taroom Trough before.
The primary targets of Daydream-2 are tight gas and coal formations that require stimulation to flow – a free-flowing zone adds a lot to these in terms of economics (lower costs, possibly lower decline rates, energy in the well-bore, etc).
In January we undertook laboratory analysis of samples obtained from the sands captured at the wellsite from the Lorelle sandstone. This work identified clay rims on the sands that preserved porosity in this highly pressured deep zone. These results are analogous with the high productivity deep Permian section of the Perth Basin which has been a source of enormous success in recent years.2
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Elixir Energy, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
Elixir Energy Investor Kit
- Corporate info
- Insights
- Growth strategies
- Upcoming projects