Comet Ridge Increases Gunnedah Basin CSG Acreage

Coal seam gas explorer Comet Ridge Limited has acquired stake in Petrel Energy Limited’s interests in PEL 6, PEL 427 and PEL 428 in the Gunnedah Basin in northern New South Wales by paying A$750,000.

These three contiguous licences are located in the northern Gunnedah Basin, immediately north and west of Santos’ Narrabri CSG Project, and cover a total area of approximately 18,000 sq km. 

Prior to  this transaction Comet Ridge held a 25% interest in PEL 427 and a 40% interest in PEL 428 which now rises to 50% and 60% respectively. In PEL 6 it now holds 22.5% stake.

This latest consolidation has reduced the number of parties across this portion of the Gunnedah Basin down to two - Comet Ridge and Santos. 

“We believe that the Gunnedah Basin will emerge as a major CSG province, and this latest acquisition is consistent with Comet Ridge’s strategy of building material interests in prospective CSG basins.  This acquisition also adds to the Comet Ridge resources base in eastern Australia, adding 243 PJ  of contingent resource and 1079 PJ of prospective resource and taking the company to over 5400 PJ of total resources in Queensland and NSW,” Comet Ridge Managing Director, Tor McCaul said.

Comet Ridge expects its commercialisation options for gas from its northern Gunnedah Basin assets to be aligned with Santos’ plans to fully develop the gas potential of this area, whether the gas flows north to the GLNG project in Gladstone, and / or south to Newcastle and Sydney, providing power generation and domestic supply in NSW.