>Tri-Star Interests in Exploration and Production Tenures  >Fairview and Spring Gully Gas Sales Graph

In inland Queensland, Australia, 400km north west of the State capital, Brisbane, there exists an energy resource which is potentially Australia’s largest land-based reserve of natural gas.

This 20,000 square kilometre area, part of Queensland’s Bowen Basin, includes the Fairview and Spring Gully (Durham Ranch) Coal Seam Methane (CSM) Fields and is capable of providing a reliable, economical supply of gas to Queensland for generations. These CSM Fields are being developed by and are commercially producing as part of the Comet Ridge Project and Spring Gully Project, respectively. Tri-Star began exploring for coal seam methane gas in Australia in 1989.  The resource area – bounded by Roma, Injune and Taroom, through to the Carnarvon Gorge in the north – has an estimated value of more than $AUS20 billion and is widely acclaimed as potentially the best coal seam methane gas field in the world.  Research by the Australian Gas Association puts the Bowen And Surat Basin coal seam gas resource at between 124,000 and 192,000 producible petajoules. The CSM resource is strategically located to provide much needed clean and efficient energy to Queensland’s major industrial centres.  Connected to the main Gladstone Pipeline and the Wallumbilla Gas Trading Hub, this CSM is delivering economic, environmental and employment benefits to both local and regional Queensland and will underpin project development well into the 21st century. The coal seams in the Fairview and Spring Gully (Durham Ranch) Fields which produce methane are generally about 500m to 1000m below the surface – too deep for commercially viable coal mining. The coal contains adsorbed gas and the seams are usually saturated with water. In this resource, the well-developed fracture system of coal, called cleats means the seams are highly permeable, allowing the flow of gas and water. As the water is pumped from the seam, pressure is reduced and the methane gas is released in to the cleats for extraction and production. The coals of this resource are clean and highly permeable, readily producing commercial quantities of high quality methane. Other coals may contain calcium carbonate and other secondary deposits, which reduces permeability and limits commercial gas production.       It's all in the coal Coal cuttings This resource is potentially the best coal seam methane gas field in the world and will provide significant economic benefits to Queensland and regional communities.   Tri-Star Interests in Exploration and Production Tenures Tri-Star has interests in more than 17 Authorities to Prospect (ATP) that have been granted primarily for CSM, but in which conventional exploration is also being investigated. Additionally, Tri-Star has interests in 16 Petroleum Leases (PL), which have been granted for the production of CSM. A further five ATP applications have been lodged with the State Government to investigate new underexplored areas of the Eromanga and Georgina Basins in far western Queensland. The ATPs and PLs in which Tri-Star is involved are found throughout the state of Queensland, as shown on the accompanying map. However, our interests in the primary Permian coal resource occurs in the Comet Ridge area of the Bowen Basin, which is located approximately 400 to 500 km northwest of Brisbane. The extensive coal seam methane resources are being developed to provide a reliable and efficient supply of competitively-priced gas to Queensland industry and power generation. Australia’s first commercially-viable coal seam methane was discovered by Tri-Star in the Fairview Field in August 1994 on ATP 526P (now on PL 90, 91 and 92), as part of the Comet Ridge Project, now operated by a 100% subsidiary of Santos Ltd. Commercial production from Fairview Field commenced in February 1998. Over 100 wells have been drilled and further drilling and gathering system connections are in progress. Commercially-viable production was discovered by Tri-Star from the Durham Ranch CSM Field in August 1998.  Commercial production of the Durham Ranch CSM Field (due south of the Fairview Field) commenced in June 2005 on PL 195 and 204, as part of the Spring Gully Project operated by Origin Energy.  Over 100 wells have been drilled to date and further drilling and gathering system connections are in progress. Durham Ranch Tri-Star Petroleum interests map is available as a PDF file. You will need Acrobat Reader, if you don't have it you can get it here. Tri-Star Petroleum interests map (PDF 1.5mb)     Fairview and Spring Gully Gas Sales Graph The Fairview and Spring Gully Gas Sales Graph is available as a PDF file.  You will need Acrobat Reader, if you don't have it, you can get it here.  Download Fairview Sales graph PDF (56k) Environmentally Preferred Gas During the production of coal seam methane gas, monitoring and testing are undertaken by the Operators to ensure compliance with strict Queensland Government environmental guidelines. The Fairview and Spring Gully resource’s coal seam methane gas is exceptionally pure, 97% methane and can be transported directly from the wells into the gas pipeline grid, unlike most natural gas, which requires further processing to strip impurities such as carbon dioxide. Production of this low emission energy source is helping Australia meet environmental commitments to reduce greenhouse gas. Industries such as power generation, alumina refining, chemical and food processing, and domestic users benefit from this environmentally preferred and highly efficient energy source.

Home | About Tri-Star Petroleum | What is Coal Seam Methane Tri-Star and CSM Resource | Contact Us © Tri - Star Petroleum Company 2011