Background of the TMS

The TMS is an over pressured and naturally fractured unconventional oil play.  It is “on trend” with the Eagle Ford shale in Texas USA, in that it has similar depositional history and age.

Whilst still in the appraisal phase, over 80 horizontal wells have been drilled in the TMS which has helped delineate the high performing area or the core of the play. Australis operates and produces from 27 of the wells drilled in 2014 and earlier. The most recent of these wells were drilled in the core of the TMS (within Australis’ acreage) in 2014. Australis also operates the 2018 and 2019 wells drilled under the Australis initial drilling program. They have demonstrated consistently high oil productivity and downward trending costs. 

The depositional area of the TMS is 14 million acres across southern Louisiana and Mississippi (refer to area in blue on map below).  In the early days of the TMS, operators acquired large positions speculatively on the back of then strong oil prices (pre 2015) and success in other plays using the Eagle Ford in particular as the analogue for initial acreage positions. However, well performance was variable (and usually binary) depending on whether drilling occurred in or outside of the core area. The high performing wells were all drilled within the core area.

Of the approximately 80 wells that delineate the TMS Core (i.e. within the red oval of the map below which delineates the core area)  ~ 50 are within the TMS Core.

Only approximately 450,000 acres (3%) is considered as part of the TMS Core.