TMK starts drilling seventh gas production well in Mongolia

The Age

5 days ago

TMK Energy has started drilling a seventh production well to increase capacity at its Lucky Fox Pilot Well project in southern Mongolia, using a larger, more powerful TXD200 rig for the first time in the country.
Canadian firm Major Drilling is drilling the LF-07 pilot production well to further reduce the reservoir pressure towards the targeted critical desorption pressure. The additional well should boost the depressurisation sought at the project and bump up total production capacity.
A recent independent technical review recommended management utilise the larger TDX200 rig, which also has a more advanced mud system to drive drilling efficiencies.
The new well is being completed on a fixed cost 'turnkey' contract with Major Drilling to minimise TMK's exposure to cost overruns.
The Canadian-based drilling firm has drilled all six previous pilot wells at the project site.
The Lucky Fox project, which is part of TMK's wider Gurvantes XXXV coal seam gas project, has progressively lifted gas output this year, setting several monthly records for gas volume produced.
The company expects to shortly produce commercial rates of gas across its 60-square-kilometre project in the Nariin Sukhait area of Mongolia's vast countryside.
TMK Energy chief executive officer Dougal Ferguson said: 'We have commenced drilling of our seventh pilot production well in the Lucky Fox Pilot Well project, which is another positive step forward for the project… With all six existing wells on production, including LF-05, which has recently been successfully remediated, we look forward to bringing LF-07 on production and continuing to grow our gas production capacity.'
Management has recently had pressure build-up tests conducted at its LF-01, LF-02 and LF-03 wells, encouragingly demonstrating significant reductions in the reservoir pressure within the past two years and providing an overall improvement in reservoir depressurisation.