ADX Energy primes pivotal Austrian shallow gas well for testing

ADX Christmas tree and well head installed on the HOCH-1 well in preparation for mid-June testing.

ADX Energy (ASX: ADX) has buttoned up its HOCH-1 shallow gas well in Upper Austria and the rig has now been released, teeing up a pivotal mid-June perforation and production test that could unlock a fast-track European gas development.

The HOCH-1 well commenced drilling on 16 April within the company’s ADX-AT-I licence in Upper Austria, where it operates the prospect with a 50 per cent economic interest.

Most recent operations have included running and cementing 4½ inch casing and installing a 2⅜ inch production completion ahead of perforation and testing. A Christmas tree and wellhead are already in place, with surface production equipment mobilising to site ahead of the planned mid-June flow test.

HOCH-1 is the first cab off the rank in the company’s planned three-well shallow gas campaign in Upper Austria and sits just two kilometres from open-access pipeline infrastructure. The prospect carried a pre-drill mean prospective resource estimate of 8 billion cubic feet of gas (Bcf), with upside to 17.3Bcf before additional deeper gas-bearing zones were encountered during drilling.

The well targeted Miocene-aged Hall Formation submarine channel sandstones within a structurally supported stratigraphic trap, combining a three-way dip closure with an up-dip pinch-out seal. The company’s 3D seismic interpretation and class 3 amplitude versus offset anomalies lined up closely with the drilling results, validating the broader shallow gas model unfolding across the basin.

After intersecting the original intra-Hall amplitude-supported target, management pushed the well deeper, as persistent gas shows and elevated gas readings suggested a potentially more robust gas-charged system below the planned target zone. Subsequent wireline logging confirmed the original target contained thinner-than-expected sandstone bands and is now considered unlikely to be commercially viable at HOCH-1.

Management’s decision, however, to deepen the well appears to have paid off. Seven gas-bearing intervals were encountered within the deeper Base Hall channel sequence between 1465m and 1617m, delivering a combined 4m to 6m of net gas pay.

Although the individual reservoirs are relatively thin, nearby analogue Hall Formation fields have flowed at up to 9 million standard cubic feet of gas per day, equivalent to 1500 barrels of oil per day, highlighting the commercial punch these shallow gas systems can deliver.

The stacked gas sands now need to prove they can flow. Final testing plans are still being refined, with the company fine-tuning how best to perforate and flow test the gas-charged intervals.

The HOCH-1 well has been completed in preparation for perforation and production testing. Production testing is expected to commence by mid-June.   ADX Energy Executive Chairman Ian Tchacos

The testing phase shapes as a major moment for the company. Success at HOCH-1 could rapidly de-risk the GOLD-1 and SCHOEN-1 shallow gas prospects already permitted and waiting in line for drilling later this year. The prospects are considered structurally independent traps targeting the same proven Hall Formation reservoir system across Upper Austria.

Management is pursuing a clustered development strategy built around shared infrastructure, streamlined tie-ins and rapid monetisation potential.

The shallow gas campaign also complements the company’s existing Vienna Basin and Anshof oil production, which provides operating cash flow, while the deeper Welchau oil and gas project adds longer-term scale to the Austrian portfolio.

The timing is lining up with Europe’s continued push for domestic energy security as the region works to reduce dependence on Russian gas imports and navigates tight liquefied natural gas supply markets. Smaller infrastructure-linked conventional gas discoveries capable of swift tie-in have become increasingly valuable across the continent.

With the rig now off location and the well primed for perforation, HOCH-1 is no longer just a seismic concept on paper. The next few weeks could determine whether the company has cracked open a scalable shallow gas growth story in the middle of Europe.

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