Central, Santos Agree on Oz Dukas Project Plan

Sydney-listed Central Petroleum has reached agreement with its joint venture partner, Santos, on the forward plan for the prospective Dukas prospect in EP112 in the Northern Territory’s Amadeus Basin, it said on July 17 in a statement.

As part of the Dukas forward plan, the JV parties have agreed that the equity in EP112 which contains the Dukas‐1 well is 70% Santos / 30% Central. Dukas is one of the largest‐known onshore conventional gas prospects in Australia, the company said. 

Santos can elect, prior to July 31,2021, for Central to be carried for the first $3 million of its well costs (A$10mn gross JV). In return for a carry by Santos and if Santos so elects, Central will transfer 30% equity in EP82 (excluding the Orange prospect which is 100% Central). If such transfer occurs, Santos will pay to Central certain back‐costs associated with the transferred interest for field activities conducted in EP82 from the date of this agreement.

Should Santos not carry Central in exchange for the option to have 30% equity in EP82, the equity interest in EP112 (with Dukas‐1) will revert from 70% Santos / 30% Central to 55% Santos / 45% Central.

“We are pleased to have reached agreement with Santos on a path forward to complete drilling at the exciting Dukas prospect, which remains the premier onshore multi‐tcf conventional gas opportunity in Australia. Whilst the target drilling window isn’t as soon as we had hoped, we now have an agreed Dukas forward plan that gets the programme underway together with the possibility of Central being free carried for $3 million on this well,” said Central’s CEO Leon Devaney.

Central further said that the JV will now assess various options and their costs to intersect the target formation using specialised high‐pressure equipment, with the JV working toward a decision on the preferred option by year end.