Vintage Energy starts well completions to bring Vali gas field online
Data from Vintage’s Vali-2 and Vai-3 wells will be incorporated in a new gas reserve estimate for the Cooper Basin field.
Oil and gas company Vintage Energy (ASX: VEN) has announced it has entered the second of four operational phases in a plan to bring its Vali gas field in Queensland’s Cooper Basin into production.
Vintage operates the Vali field with a 50% stake in a joint venture with Metgasco (ASX: MEL, 25%) and private company Bridgeport Cooper Basin (25%).
The first phase, the fracture stimulation of the Vali-2 and Vali-3 wells targeting the gas-bearing Patchawarra formation across multiple zones, has now been completed. Stimulation operations were already completed previously at Vali-1 ST1.
Vintage today confirmed the second phase, the well completion campaign, has commenced with the arrival of the Savanna rig 68 at the Vali-1 ST1 well site in ATP 2021.
All three Vali wells will be completed along with the nearby Odin-1 gas discovery well in permit PRL 211. The Vali wells expect to be completed as tandem producers enabling production from either or both the Patchawarra and Toolachee formations while Odin-1 is to be completed across the Toolachee and Epsilon formations.
Master services agreement signed for construction phase
The third phase in the field’s development is the pipeline and facilities construction, which involves the installation of gas gathering, separation, metering and cooling infrastructure at Vali and the installation of dual 13km pipes to connect the Vali field to the Moomba gas gathering system in South Australia.
Vintage also revealed in today’s announcement that it has executed a master services agreement with Global Engineering and Construction as construction contractor for this third phase.
Procedural requirements for regulatory approval of the pipeline and granting of an associated licence have been completed. Award of the pipeline licence is anticipated in the current month.
Installation is expected to start in August and take about five weeks with facilities construction to commence in September.
Construction will be phased based on the delivery dates for equipment and materials, prioritising Vali-1 ST1, the metering and tie-in facility. As the balance of equipment is delivered, construction at the Vali-2 and Vali-3 sites will be completed. Vintage said it is likely this will include phases of construction through until November.
Commissioning and first gas expected in October
Vintage said commissioning will start with the Vali-1 ST1 well, facilities and pipeline which are expected to be completed in October. First gas production is anticipated to occur during this period.
The remaining wells will follow in the commissioning process, which is expected to extend into November as the Vali-2 and Vali-3 lease facilities are completed and handed over.
Vintage confirmed gas produced in the commissioning phase will be used initially for commissioning of facilities and pipeline and line-pack prior to supplying to AGL (ASX: AGL) under the gas sales agreement.
In respect of this agreement, Vintage also today confirmed the joint venture has received the final $5 million tranche pre-payment from AGL.