Concurrent 17. Presentation for: The story of Esso Australia’s push to explore the frontier Gippsland Basin with the ultra-deep water Sculpin-1 exploration well

Abstract

Presented on Wednesday 18 May: Session 17 In late 2018, Esso Australia embarked on the drilling of Sculpin-1. Drilled in 2278 m of water, this is Australia’s deepest water exploration well and the first ultra-deep water well in the Gippsland Basin. Drilling of this well was the culmination of a bold exploration campaign in the VIC/P70 permit at the southeastern margin of the prolific hydrocarbon producing Gippsland Basin, which also saw the drilling of Baldfish-1 and Hairtail-1 in 2018. An east coast gas market with a high demand for additional gas resources combined with Esso Australia’s renewed technical focus on the deep and ultra-deep water sectors of the VIC/P70 exploration permit led to the identification of the Sculpin prospect, a stratigraphic lead premised on a late Cretaceous deep water reservoir system flowing into the south east Gippsland Basin depocentre from southern hinterlands. Technical analysis including integrated seismic toolkits, spectral decomposition and colour-blend imaging, rock properties and amplitude versus offset/direct hydrocarbon indicator modelling were key to Esso’s decision to test the new play with the Sculpin-1 well. Although the well did not encounter hydrocarbons, it did provide insights into reservoir quality, source and migration in the previously untested southeastern margin of the basin. To access the presentation click the link on the right. To read the full paper click here