Buru Energy has been quietly weighing into the burgeoning hydrogen industry and has now amassed some 29,000 sq kms of ground in South Australia that it says is prospective for “natural” hydrogen.
The company says its wholly owned hydrogen subsidiary 2H Resources will complete initial prospecting work across its SA tenements that are on trend with legacy naturally occurring hydrogen discoveries. 2H is also looking to chase down onshore natural hydrogen opportunities globally.
Hydrogen is sending the market into hyper-drive right now. Public companies are being created to harvest it, Governments are throwing money at it and big players like Twiggy Forrest are wading into it.
Many newcomers seeking to carve off a slice of the hydrogen pie are generally looking to do so by manufacturing it. Hydrogen can be manufactured by mixing electricity with water and there is no shortage of ASX listed players out there seeking to do just that.
“Green” hydrogen is also on everybody’s lips right now and involves the manufacturing of hydrogen using wind, solar or some other renewable energy source to create the hydrogen.
Better known for its Canning Basin oil and gas tenure, Buru’s hydrogen play in SA is unusual in that it is a naturally occurring energy source rather than a manufactured one.
Natural hydrogen is a relatively new discovery and differs from traditional hydrogen in that is doesn’t require processing to be used as a fuel.
According to internationally renowned professional services entity Ernst and Young, hydrogen could be one of the key tools used to abate climate change and Buru’s pursuit of clean energy through natural hydrogen could end up being right on the money.
The company says due to natural hydrogen being void of any production processes, it has the potential to be a more economical power source compared to manufactured hydrogen.
Buru, through its subsidiary 2H, will initially explore its 29,000 square kilometres of recently acquired permits in South Australia for its natural hydrogen potential. The campaign will include ground prospecting where the company’s in-house technology will be applied.
Buru says it is also planning on assessing global hydrogen opportunities and is actively engaging recognised specialists to help it capitalise on any leads and further expand on its current workplan.
Elsewhere, at its Canning Basin home base, the company is installing specialised hydrogen mudgas detection units on its oil and gas wells to monitor for both hydrogen and helium.
The detection system identified almost 6 per cent hydrogen in mudgas across a 6m interval in Buru’s Currajong-1 well. It says 4.9 per cent hydrogen was also detected in the Rafael-1 well.
The company will further evaluate the significance of the hydrogen shows in the Canning however it believes the results demonstrate the widespread occurrence of natural hydrogen in the Canning Basin also.
Buru appears to be dipping its toe into what is fast becoming a lucrative industry that may well end up swallowing it whole as the entire world embraces the concept of a net-zero economy.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au
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