ADX Energy has bolstered the potential of its Austrian exploration campaign, sniffing out six additional gas-bearing intervals after a tactical decision to push the HOCH-1 well deeper than originally planned. The new discovery adds immediate “bonus” volume to a project already validated by a primary gas hit earlier this week.
Drilling Progress and New Discoveries
The HOCH-1 gas exploration well, which lies in its ADX-AT-I exploration licence in Upper Austria, officially kicked off drilling just 22 days ago. The well represents the first of three shallow gas prospects ADX has planned for the region, with the two additional prospects already permitted for drilling during the 2026 calendar year.
As of yesterday evening, the crew were preparing to log the 6 1/8-inch hole, having reached a depth of 1619 metres. The company’s savvy decision to deepen the well has proved fruitful, with six further sands, each measuring 1 to 2 metres thick, encountered with clear gas shows. The fresh intervals sit below the company’s reported primary Hall Formation target, which was intersected between 1,354 and 1,368 metres. Crucially, the presence of these gas sand intervals has been confirmed through both drilling cuttings and high gas concentrations recorded in the mud.
Next Steps and Logging Program
ADX says, due to the extra time taken to explore these deeper zones, the planned wireline logging program has been rescheduled for today, with logging set to provide definitive confirmation of reservoir quality, net reservoir thickness and gas saturation. The company says it expects to run a “quick look” analysis by tomorrow. Should these results confirm the encouraging drilling data, the well will be cased and completed in preparation for production testing.
ADX Energy executive chairman Ian Tchacos commented: “The HOCH-1 well continues to provide encouraging results for ADX and its partner. Analogous Base Hall reservoirs have provided meaningful contributions to production rates and reserves in other nearby wells in the basin.”
Technical Background and Resource Potential
The technical thesis for HOCH-1 centres on highly productive shallow gas reservoirs within Miocene-aged sandstones of the Hall Formation. ADX says the scale of the opportunity is highlighted by similar wells in the basin that have recorded initial production rates of up to 9 million standard cubic feet of gas per day, the equivalent of 1,500 barrels of oil per day. The HOCH prospect is already estimated to hold a mean prospective resource of 8 billion cubic feet (Bcf), with a high-case estimate of 17.3 Bcf. Notably, the deeper secondary Base Hall intervals were not included in those pre-drill figures, representing pure upside for the project.
Future Prospects and Cluster Development
Beyond HOCH-1, ADX is keeping the drill bit busy across its broader Upper Austria campaign, with the high-impact GOLD-1 and SCHOEN-1 prospects next in line for near-term drilling nearby. GOLD-1 sits to the east, while the SCHOEN-1 prospect is located immediately to the south. The company considers both targets technically independent and low risk, with the proximity of all its wells offering the tantalising prospect of a concentrated development cluster. Success at GOLD-1 or SCHOEN-1 would allow for shared infrastructure and rapid commercialisation within the Austrian pipeline grid.
The next steps for ADX involve evaluating the logging data and mobilising testing equipment. If the flow rates match the geological promise, the company could be on its way to establishing a significant new gas cluster. Production testing is vital to determine reservoir productivity and the minimum reserves potential of the discovery.
It has been a cracking start to the season for the crew in Austria. If the logging and flow tests match the drill bit’s promise, ADX could be sitting on a revenue-ready gas cluster right in the heart of Europe.
