Buru spuds exploration well for major WA oil hunt

Buru Energy’s hunt for onshore oil within the mighty Canning Basin in Western Australia’s north-central area has moved up a gear with the spudding of the company’s Rafael Shallow 1 exploration well.

The drilling is targeting the Rafael Shallow oil prospect where a prospective resource of between 3.2 million stock tank barrels (MMstb) of oil and 79 MMstb has already been identified, including a best estimate of 19 MMstb.

The well is designed to intercept reservoirs in the Poole Sandstones and Grant Formation interpreted to lie between 750m and 1250m depth. Buru believes both structures are akin to previously discovered shallow oil pools at WA’s historical Blina Oilfield, where drilling in the 1980s hit oil at about 1500m below surface in a geological formation known as the Lennard Shelf.

Buru holds a 75 per cent interest in Rafael Shallow, with its joint venture (JV) partners Twinsouth Holdings and Jingie Investments carrying the costs of the well to the amount of $3 million to earn a 25 per cent stake. Drilling of the well is expected to be concluded later this month.

Management notes that Rafael Shallow 1 is the first well to be drilled in the Canning Basin since Buru’s gas discovery in 2021 at its Rafael Deep prospect. The company believes it represents the first proven, significant conventional onshore gas and condensate resource in WA.

A contingent resource estimate with gross recoverable 1C volumes of 85 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of gas and 1.8 million barrels of condensate has been defined at Rafael Deep.

Buru Energy chief executive officer Thomas Nador said: “An oil discovery at the Rafael Shallow 1 prospect could provide a rapid development path that would add substantial value for the Rafael Shallow Joint Venture Parties. In addition, a discovery could provide an alternative funding path for Buru’s 100 per cent-owned Rafael (deep) gas and condensate project, which is the Company’s strategic development priority.”

Management’s development plans for Rafael Deep involve a scalable liquified natural gas (LNG) and condensate supply operation for regional use. More specifically, a small-scale LNG facility including liquids separation is initially envisaged for the Rafael 1 wellsite.

The LNG is planned to be trucked to Broome and regional demand centres, while condensate is anticipated to be transported to regional communities for diesel replacement purposes.

According to the company, the proposed operation at Rafael Deep is estimated to boast a 20-year project life, with first production targeted for 2027.

Buru’s exploration works in the Canning Basin have already delivered the goods with what appears to be a significant gas discovery at Rafael Deep. Its oil pursuit at Rafael Shallow now has the potential to propel the company to higher levels and help transform it into a significant energy provider for regional WA.

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