FINDER SHALE — EXPLORATION WELLS
154. Hon ROBIN CHAPPLE to the minister representing the
Minister for Mines and Petroleum:
I refer to Finder Shale's
environment plan for the Helios-1/1H exploration wells on the EP493 document,
the fracking briefing from the mines department on 7 December 2018 and the
comments at the briefing, and Finder Shale's environment plan.
(1) Does the government still stand
by the view that this is a conventional gas well?
(2) If yes to
(1), why does Finder Shale identify that it will be using the fracking additive
Nacol and the fracking sealant Fracseal?
(3) If yes to
(1), why does Finder Shale identify that it will be targeting a non-conventional
shale formation reservoir and that it is very unlikely that any significant
volume of gas will be produced to surface during the drilling operations, as it
is of low permeability?
(4) Will the
government still stand by the granting to Finder Shale of an incentive to drill
in the Helios project, given Finder Shale's environment plan for the
Helios-1/1H exploration wells?
Hon
ALANNAH MacTIERNAN replied:
I thank the member for the question.
The following information has been provided by the Minister for Mines and
Petroleum.
(1) The environment
plan relates to an approval for an exploration well that involves only
conventional drilling methods.
(2) Finder Shale
is not approved to use Nacol. Fracseal—cellulose—is to prevent
lost circulation and is a common additive used in conventional oil and gas
operations.
(3) Finder Shale
has made an application under the relevant legislation and the government has
assessed that application.
(4) Finder Shale withdrew from round 18 exploration
incentive scheme co-funded drilling on 22 January 2019.