Icon pins hopes on Cooper Basin field
GOLD Coast oil and gas explorer Icon Energy targeted its two most promising Cooper Basin tenements in the six months to December 31.
Icon posted a $1.77 million half-year loss, slightly reduced from the $1.95 million loss of a year earlier.
Icon said its efforts were focused on its ATP594 and ATP855 tenements in that period.
ATP594 is on the eastern flank of the Cooper Basin west of Quilpie and covers 1230sq km.
Icon believes ATP594 is its most highly prospective tenement and hopes a seismic survey under way will enable the company to transition from explorer to producer.
The company wholly owns the tenement.
Icon earlier said the company is pinning its hopes on ATP594.
Managing director Ray James said if ATP594 is commercialised, Icon will be sitting on a sweet spot which “certainly appears to be profitable”.
Icon said the first stage of an exploration program in its ATP855 tenement is complete and the next phase of activity is aimed at defining its resource potential.
The tenement is in the Cooper Basin’s Napamerri Trough.
Icon said drilling has confirmed “a significant natural gas resource” in the tenement. Icon holds a 35.1 per cent stake in ATP855 with joint venture partner Beach Energy.
Icon said it had plugged and abandoned three wells in its ATP626 tenement in the Surat Basin and rehabilitation of the site is complete.
The explorer ended the six months to December 31 with a cash balance of $5.1 million and $9.5 million on term deposit.
It spent around $1 million on administration.
Icon outlaid $32.7 million on exploration in the halfyear.
It has net assets of around $51 million and total liabilities of $2.18 million.
Icon did not declare a dividend. Its shares closed 3.44 per cent lower at 2.8¢.