Galilee Basin News Galilee Basin brings oil and gas expert home LONGREACH-born, Lester Cam- and gas exploration to processing Over the next 10 years it grew to pbell (known as Cam) Rathie, who the reserves and then into a staff of 450 and contract managed was awarded an AM in this year’s management. oil and gas wells in Sumatra and Queen’s Birthday Honours for He fulfilled his dream of seeing Australia with responsibility for services to oil and gas exploration the world with jobs taking him everything from government and production, has returned to from Morocco to India, Argentina regulations to hiring staff. the region with Galilee Energy’s to Canada, the Middle East and They sold out to a Norwegian coal seam gas project. across much of South East Asia firm, AGR Group in 2006 and by Cam and his older brother Kerry including Indonesia, Taiwan, 2008 Cam considered himself “semi were sons of Harry and Margaret Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam. retired”. He and his wife moved to Rathie who had properties in the ”I went to wonderful places a property at Kurwongbah, outside Blackall area including Avington people don’t go to because they’re Brisbane. on the Barcoo and Maryvale near not tourist spots,” he said. Retirement however didn’t Yalleroi. “You meet the locals and learn last long, and he was invited to After finishing school, Kerry the culture, because you’re living join Galilee Energy and help headed off to university to became with them and employing them.” develop the coal seam gas permits a geneticist while Cam stayed on In 1988 he and his wife Louise originally held by Enron (the US the family properties. returned to Australia so their son utilities giant which collapsed in “There was quite a bit of Harry could grow up here, making spectacular fashion in 2001). exploration drilling happening Darwin their home for the next 20 “Enron were coal seam gas in the area at the time and I got years. pioneers in Australia, and set the interested,” he said. “At that time BHP was world basis from which Galilee Energy “Not in mining, as such. leader in floating production, operated the Rodney Creek pilot “I thought it offered a change of storage and offtake (known as CSG evaluation plant on Glenaras,” pace and a chance to see the world FPSO) which operated in water too he said. –at someone else’s expense.” deep for fixed platforms,” he said. “I’d known George Gowing He first joined Core Laboratories, Old tankers were outfitted with from years ago at Jericho and the a Texas-based geological service everything from the undersea property now has the AGL pilot firm and his first posting was to the production and mooring equipment plant named Glenaras. Marlin oil platform in Bass Strait. to plant for separating the produced “I have Brown, McClymont and Two weeks into the job a gas fluids. This was marketed to Banks relations all across that blowout put him in the drink. customers whose tankers tied up area. Aunt Jean married Bert “I didn’t have to swim the first behind the FPSO. McClymont and we’ve recently half mile or so because of the He set up over 30 Timor Sea drilled a well on a property of John velocity of the gas coming out,” he wells and worked on other BHP McClymont’s. said. operations until 1997 when he and “I was away for 40 years Finding it still an “interesting a colleague decided to pool their wandering the world, so it’s great job,” he spent the next 20 years expertise and formed Upstream to come back and meet all these Cam Rathie AM of Galilee Energy.* in the industry moving from oil Petroleum. people I knew about.” Coal Seam Gas is a whole new energy industry

CSG was a very different between 5-15 years, with field is 30-50 years so industry to oil and gas wells capped at the end of there was real potential production, according to their lifespan and others for local towns to take Mr Rathie. brought on stream. advantage of the resource Conventional oil and The remoteness of to be gas powered and for gas were relatively easy the Galilee Basin also residents to convert from to develop, market and created its own issues. diesel to LNG powered. transport but coal seam “There is quite mature There were also a host gas (or methane)is more CSG production in both of opportunities for local difficult because it had to the Surat and Bowen businesses to get involved be compressed into a fluid Basins, while there is in land preparation, or piped to consumers. none in Galilee. Their contracting, roads, pads, Developing it was also coal seams are quite water ponds, fencing etc. different. shallow, whereas CSG Mechanical and electrical “Oil and gas are found tenements in the Galilee trades are needed to set in a porous medium like Basin have coal deposits up the process stations sandstone and drilling at 800-1200m. and operate them. into it allows the fluid to The Bowen coalfields And since the plants flow to the well bore and are huge, there is a lot of don’t occupy much space, up to the surface. infrastructure, so the gas they’re eco friendly “CSG does not sit can be marketed locally, and the people working in a reservoir but is and close to the coast for on them can be drawn chemically bonded to the export markets. from the local farming Exoma Energy drilling the Crossmore South 1 corehole on Crossmoor Station in December 2009. Far left are two water coal, and removing the “The Galilee Basin community. tanks, then the mud tank and drill rig. On the right is a manatu (or four wheel drive fork lift).* Photo courtesy Exoma Energy. water in the coal seam doesn’t have anything will lower the pressure like that yet and it will and free the gas. probably take 10 years “Initially the wells to develop the industry produce a lot of water, but here. less as time goes on.” “It takes a while to At present no one establish the size of the knows how much water reserve and it needs Covering Western Queensland was in the Galilee Basin a few pilot projects to coal seams or how much see if it has commercial gas could be produced reserves and once they With all your Car rental needs because there has not yet are defined, we have to been a successful pilot come up with a market plant operation. suitable for the size of the Latest model cars, 4x4 wagons & utes. “The attempt by Galilee reserve.” at Rodney Creek couldn’t Galilee Energy had a pump enough water out head start with its farm- to free the gas,” he said. in agreement with AGL “AGL has learnt from as AGL is potentially able that, and everyone is to market CSG into the watching its Glenaras domestic grid. pilot to see how it will “But the average perform.” explorer in the Galilee Barcaldine | cloncurry | longreach | Mount isa Coal seam gas Basin will have to come Call us on (07) 4982 1767 or email [email protected] extraction requires a up with something pretty lot of wells – more than innovative if they want to 100 for a large gas field, monetarise it in the short www.budget.com.au Budget - driving your dollar further spaced about 1/2km apart. term.” Each well produces for The lifespan of a CSG Page 10 — The Longreach Leader, Friday June 25, 2010