Plug stuck at bottom of well: Earlier this year the deep
Habancro #2 well hit a problem, which it later tried to plug more than
4 kilometres underground. A team of engineers went on a “fishing
expedition” to retrieve the rented Halliburton plug after it had been
soaked with chemicals to remove debris. But as soon as it was touched,
the plug sailed to the bottom of the well and could not be removed.
New stem and $5 million test required: Now, a new stem needs to
be built over about 30 days in the new year to complete the well, after
which a circulation test will run for six weeks at a cost of up to $5
million. “Could it have been prevented? Of course in hindsight maybe we
could have done things differently,” Dr Bertus de Graaf told
shareholders at the annual meeting in Brisbane. “I am very confident of
moving to Stage Two in May.”
Company bids for $50-70 million govt grant: The nine-member
board, chaired by Martin Albrecht, recently lobbied in Canberra for
funding to help with the cost of a demonstration plant. The company
hopes to be awarded a federal government grant in the order of $50
million to $70 million for its zero emission project. Shares in
Geodynamics, which is 27 per cent owned by Origin and Woodside
Petroleum, rose yesterday to $1.66.
The Courier Mail, 24/11/2005, p. 27
Source: Erisk – www.erisk.net