Publication Name: Eastern Australian Basins Symposium 2001
Authors: R. Menpes
Date Published: November 2001
Number of Pages: 31
Reference Type: Magazine Article
Abstract:
In 1997, after 31 years of gas production and 89 wells, oil was discovered in the Jurassic-Cretaceous Eromanga Basin strata overlying the Moomba Gas Field in the Permian Cooper Basin. Of the 140 wells drilled in Moomba to date, 22 wells have targeted oil accumulations in the overlying Eromanga Basin strata (ten gas development wells with oil secondary targets, five oil exploration wells, seven oil development wells). All 22 wells have been drilled within the past four years. To date, five Eromanga oil pools have been discovered in Moomba.The history of Moomba (and Big Lake) oil clearly illustrates an important lesson in petroleum exploration: if data are not acquired, or are misinterpreted, due to the tenets of the day, significant petroleum accumulations may be completely missed, or not recognised for what they are.