It plans to dispatch the drilling rig, the COSL Prospector, to the South Island to drill Tawhaki-1, about 146km south-east of Balclutha. OMV and partner Mitsui have been exploring in the Great South Basin for 12 years but are yet to drill a well. Whereas the Taranaki marine environment and the operating conditions there are well understood, OMV's application for the Great South Basin required a lot of fresh material on conditions there. Drilling Tawhaki after the Gladstone-1 well it is currently drilling north-west of New Plymouth would enable OMV to make the most of the better summer weather. The potential of the deep sedimentary rock in the Great South Basin, and the Canterbury Basin to the north, has long been recognised.

Source: Otago Daily Times December 17, 2019 06:33 UTC