Perth Basin energy player Empire Oil & Gas has placed its ASX-listed securities into suspension after it was unable to restart production at its Red Gully-1 well.
The company has flagged it will be likely to make an announcement about a solution within the next two weeks.
The well feeds the Red Gully processing plant, which has a capacity of up to 10 terajoules per day and produces about 1 per cent of the state’s domestic natural gas use.
The latest data from the Australian Energy Market Operator suggests the processing facility is today producing at 70 per cent of capacity.
Production at the well itself had been paused for a reserves pressure survey.
Once the survey was completed, however, liquids in the piping prevented flow returning to its previous level.
Empire then attempted a nitrogen lift to unclog the well, which failed.
That led the company to request a trading halt on Monday, which today became a suspension.
Empire said the company was now assessing various options to restart the well.
It is not the first production issue for Empire, with the company previously suffering slow flow rates at its wells, volatile output, and numerous shutdowns during its first years of operation in 2013 and 2014.
More recently, former Canaccord Genuity head of energy Asia Pacific, Angus Walker, took over as managing director after the resignation of Ken Aitken.
Today, the company also announced it would remain as a 40 per cent partner in the EP416 and EP480 zones in the Peel region.
Work on that prospect is being led by Pilot Energy, which had carried Empire’s share of costs as part of a farm in agreement.
Empire shares last changed hands at 12 cents each.
