Triangle banks $6.7m cheque after sale of State Gas shares

ASX-listed Triangle Energy Global could soon inject $6.72 million into its portfolio of WA-based oil and gas operations after selling off a slice of its interests in NSW oil and gas developer State Gas.

Despite offloading 24 million shares, Triangle retains a strategic holding in State Gas representing more than 10 per cent of the company’s stock and says it is now well placed to navigate an increasingly evolving energy sector.

Management plans to plough some of the cash into exploration drilling at its now wholly owned L7 and EP 437 permits in the Perth Basin. Triangle previously held a significant interest in the assets but recently acquired the balance from ASX-listed explorer Key Petroleum for $600,000 in cash and $500,000 in shares, to be issued on or before June 30, 2023.

Triangle believes the two permits could hold about 617 billion cubic feet of gas and approximately 19 million barrels of oil.

L7 is an onshore exploration play south of Geraldton.

The permit’s exploration upside is underlined by the Mount Horner Field, a zone inside the tenure which once produced over 1.7 million barrels of oil until it was closed off about a decade ago.

Key Petroleum, the site's former proprietor, says a considerable portion of Mount Horner’s oil was derived from Jurassic-era stratigraphies, leaving the sector's north-lying Permian and Triassic layers largely untapped.

The second permit, EP 437, is an onshore basin on the edge of the North Perth Basin and is adjacent to the Dongara oil and gas field south of Geraldton in WA.

According to Triangle, several operators have historically struck oil and gas in EP 437.

Notably, the company has already secured a package of 3D seismic data that stretches across the two permits and expects to have its hands on a final data set later this year. Triangle then plans to draw up a list of new targets ahead of a 2024 exploration campaign.

A slice of the sale will also be used to fund the developer’s ongoing Carbon capture and sequestration or “CSS” initiatives with JV partner Pilot Energy.

CSS is a rapidly emerging process that involves capturing carbon dioxide produced during power generation and stowing it in underground reservoirs that once contained oil and gas.

The duo are currently rolling out 700 barrels of oil per day at the Cliff Head oil field about 270km north of Perth, however it plans to use the operation’s sub-surface reservoirs to store carbon once the field has been exhausted.

Despite a relative flurry of post-pandemic exploration, a recent survey by global research and consultancy group Wood Mackenzie suggested a growing list of operators expect budgets to remain flat over the next few years.

The environment has prompted companies to streamline portfolios and has ushered in a new wave of commercial agreements - perhaps best illuminated by BHP Petroleum's merger with Woodside Energy.

With close to $7 million in the tin and a raft of projects under its belt, Triangle appears well equipped to ride the new energy wave.                                            

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au