Chevron strikes gas once again in Western Australia

US oil giant Chevron, the largest holder of untapped natural gas resources in Australia, yesterday announced one of its biggest gas discoveries in the country in the Carnarvon Basin --- its ninth and largest offshore discovery in Western Australia in the last 12 months.

California-based Chevron, the second-largest energy producer in the US, said that the Acme-1 exploration discovery well, is located in the WA-205-P permit area offshore Western Australia approximately 93 miles from Onslow.
 
Drilled in 2,880 feet (878 m) of water to a depth of 15,469 feet (4,715 m), the well encountered approximately 896 feet (273 m) of net gas pay.  "In terms of net gas pay, Acme-1 is one of our most significant natural gas discoveries in Australia," Chevron vice-chairman George Kirkland said in a statement.

Chevron's Australian subsidiary, Chevron Australia Pty Ltd is the operator of WA-205-P and holds a combined 67-per cent interest, while Shell holds the remaining interest.

Although Chevron has not revealed the size of the discovery, energy analysts estimate that the find is huge and the well could hold as much as 10 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas.

By comparison, the $42-billion Gorgon LNG project, where Chevron is also the lead operator, is Australia's largest-ever resources project with proven reserves of 12.9tcf and output of 15-million tonnes per annum (mtpa).

Kirkland said, ''In terms of net gas pay, Acme-1 is one of our most significant natural gas discoveries in Australia. As our ninth and largest offshore discovery in Western Australia in the last 12 months, it underscores the quality of our drilling program and our commitment to technical excellence and safe operations.''

Jim Blackwell, president, Chevron Asia Pacific Exploration and Production, said, ''We are realssing the opportunities we have as a leading lease holder in the Carnarvon Basin.  We expect this discovery to help underpin potential expansion opportunities at the Wheatstone liquefied natural gas hub. Adding to our Australian portfolio progresses our long-term plans to build a leading natural gas business in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.''
 
Chevron, which is the lead operator in the Gorgon LNG project and the Wheatstone natural gas project in Australia, has signed billions of dollars of LNG supply deals with Japanese and South Korean companies since mid 2009.