Botala Energy Ltd. has started commercial production testing at its Pitse Pilot principal production well 3.5B following successful hydraulic stimulation at the Serowe coal bed methane (CBM) project in Botswana.
The completion of hydraulic stimulation marks the final technical step required before the well can demonstrate commercial gas flow. The treatment creates conductive pathways through the coal seam, enabling gas to flow to the wellhead as reservoir pressure is reduced through controlled dewatering.
Following stimulation, wellhead pressure was drawn down from 47 psi to below atmospheric pressure.
Approximately 700 barrels of stimulation fluid, around 30 per cent of the total injected volume, were recovered during initial flowback, with no sand or proppant returned to the surface.
As pressure was reduced, water from the surrounding coal seam immediately began flowing back into the wellbore, confirming strong hydraulic communication between the well and the stimulated coal reservoir.
“Today marks the point where years of exploration, reservoir evaluation and engineering begin to translate into measurable production performance,” said Botala CEO Kris Martinick.
“The next stage is straightforward in its objective. We must progressively reduce reservoir pressure, bring gas into the well and determine how much the well can produce.”
Controlled dewatering of well 3.5B is now under way to gradually lower reservoir pressure and induce gas desorption. Botala is targeting a sustained flow rate above its internal commercial benchmark of 70 gigajoules (GJ) per day.
Upcoming catalysts for the company include first gas breakthrough, updated reserves certification, and the completion of a Phase 2 mini-LNG bankable feasibility study (BFS).
The Serowe CBM project aims to establish a domestic gas supply to support power generation, industrial energy, and LNG distribution across Southern Africa.
Project Pitse is the first of four development phases, targeting a cluster of six wells designed to demonstrate commercial CBM production and underpin the BFS for a Serowe-to-Leupane gas development.
