Vintage announces deferral of Odin-3 drilling in Australian Cooper Basin

Sydney-listed Vintage Energy and its joint venture partners have decided to defer the drilling of the third well, Odin-3, in the Odin gas field located in the South Australian Cooper Basin, Vintage announced on May 17.

Despite being included in the approved FY24 budget, the partners chose to delay the drilling to evaluate the results and production performance of the recently drilled Odin-2 well before proceeding further.

The joint venture's consensus is to reconsider the drilling of Odin-3 at a later stage, rather than immediately following Odin-2. However, Vintage Energy remains committed to drilling Odin-3 as soon as possible, emphasising the well's importance in appraising the western flank of the field and accessing additional gas reserves not reached by the previous wells. 

"Odin-3 is designed to appraise the western flank of the field, access gas not addressed by the preceding two wells and to provide additional gas flow from this field. In Vintage's view, the merits of the well are clear, especially when drilled back-to-back with Odin-2 and we consider the delay in drilling unfortunate,” Neil Gibbins, managing director of Vintage Energy, said. 

Additionally, Vintage Energy plans to continue recommending and exploring further projects and activities in both the Vali and Odin fields to enhance gas supply to the Eastern Australian market through existing sales contracts. 

Odin is the second new gas field brought into supply by Vintage and the joint venture, following the connection of the Vali gas field in Queensland in February 2023. Gas from Vali and Odin is processed at the Moomba processing facility. Both fields have matching joint venture ownership.

Odin-1 commenced production appraisal in September 2023, with gas supplied to Pelican Point Power, a joint venture of Engie and Mitsui, under a long-term contract extending to December 2026. Odin-2 was spudded last week. 

Vintage is the operator with 50% interest. Metgasco and Bridgeport own 25% each of the project.