Prominence Energy targets June/July 2027 drilling for South Australian helium and hydrogen

Prominence Energy NL (ASX: PRM) says it is working toward drilling its South Australian helium and natural hydrogen acreage in June or July 2027, according to a 24 July 2026 announcement. The company gave a month-level window rather than a firm date, and the plan depends on several steps first.

What is planned

The company described a staged path to drilling:

• July 2026: gravity and magnetic data interpretation to define leads and prospects
• End of August 2026: independent Prospective Resources Review of the Eyre Project
• End of September 2026: independent review of the Northern Hinge Project
• October 2026: updated drilling engineering and cost work
• November and December 2026: detailed design of the 2027 drilling program

Both projects sit within a South Australian portfolio of about 64,000 km².

Why it matters

Preliminary costings suggest three exploration wells, or two wells plus additional seismic, could be drilled for about $5 million, which the company attributes to the shallow nature of the targets. The company says it also intends to explore a farm-out or strategic partnership to reduce its own capital exposure, while keeping meaningful exposure to any success. It says its 2026 program, including drill planning, is covered by existing cash.

What the company holds

The helium and hydrogen acreage has no resource estimates in the company's disclosed figures. The estimates on file relate to older oil and gas assets, many stated years ago. They include Big Apple, a gas prospective resource of 1,370 bcf (P50, stated November 2025) in which the company holds 100%. Others carry smaller or older figures: Badger Project, 8 mmbbl of prospective oil (10% interest, stated 2014); CVN #2, 10 mmbbl (25%, stated 2011); and Bondi, 30 bcf of gas (15%, stated 2007). The company has not disclosed its interest in Agave, Bowsprit, CM1 or CM2. If the independent reviews produce resource estimates for Eyre and Northern Hinge, they would be the first for the helium and hydrogen portfolio.

What is uncertain

The $5 million figure is preliminary and the October review is meant to refine it. The company has not said how a farm-out would be structured or whether a partner will be found. The drilling window could shift if any earlier step runs late, and the company has not stated what would happen to the timetable if the reviews are delayed or the results disappoint.

The company has also recently reported work including soil gas surveys, laboratory analysis and a satellite study that it says support its exploration model at PEL 803. Whether those anomalies translate into drillable prospects is what the coming reviews are meant to test.