D3 Energy has re-established gas flow at its NGT245 E well in South Africa and confirmed a 5.2% helium composition in a new sample. Further remediation is still required before production testing, while the methane result is being retested.
- 5.2% helium confirmed at NGT245 E after remedial cementing
- 49.7% methane result subject to retesting
- Further camera, log and remedial work planned before production testing
- Work at NGT245 D to resume after stabilisation
- PR016 Production Right Application remains under assessment
NGT245 E Gas Flow Re-established
D3 Energy Limited (ASX:D3E) has restored gas flow at the NGT245 E well in South Africa’s Free State Province, turning a blocked testing pathway into a fresh helium result. Remedial cementing isolated deeper water zones from the gas-producing intervals, allowing the company to collect a sample for compositional analysis.
The sample contained 5.2% helium and 49.7% methane. D3 said the helium concentration further confirmed what it describes as a world-class composition, while warning that the methane reading is anomalously low and is being retested. The filing does not provide a flow rate, production volume or economic assessment.
Remedial Work Still Separates Sampling From Production
The result marks progress from the planned cementing fix, which followed the identification of deeper water zones restricting flow in both Nooitgedacht wells. D3 said camera and log data will now be analysed, with additional and more tailored remedial work expected before production testing can begin.
Work at NGT245 D is also due to resume after a stabilisation period following its initial cementing operations. That means the two-well programme has produced a meaningful helium composition from one well, but the operational work needed to establish sustained production performance remains incomplete.
Helium Result Feeds Larger Free State Development Case
NGT245 E sits within the company’s wholly owned ER315 permit, about 40 kilometres from the area covered by D3’s Production Right Application, PR016. The broader Free State position spans approximately 469,847 acres, while ER315 has previously delivered independently verified helium concentrations of up to 8%. PR016 remains under assessment by South Africa’s Petroleum Agency SA.
D3 said data from the drilling programme and newly acquired high-resolution seismic will be used to refine its structural interpretation and support a future attempt to convert contingent resources into reserves. That remains a company objective rather than an updated reserve estimate in this announcement. The next hard evidence will come from the methane retest, further well remediation and the eventual production-testing results.
Bottom Line?
The 5.2% helium result is encouraging, but the investment case still depends on whether remediation can deliver sustained flow and production-test data.
Questions in the middle?
- Will the retested methane result materially change the gas composition reported from NGT245 E?
- Can further remediation establish flow rates suitable for production testing at NGT245 E?
- What results will emerge when work resumes at NGT245 D and the PR016 application advances?