The contract is to undertake a 75 square mile 3-D and an 84 square mile 2-D seismic survey within Magellan’s NT/P82 Exploration Permit, offshore Australia.
The seismic survey is expected to start on the second week of December 2012 and will take about two weeks to complete.
The company plans to process and analyze the seismic data over the following three months to assess the presence and recoverability of hydrocarbons in NT/P82.
Magellan president and CEO Tom Wilson told this is an important milestone in the company’s strategy to prove up the value of its assets.
"Acquiring 3-D seismic for this block will give us a much better understanding of the nature and size of the potential hydrocarbon resources and will allow us to seek value from this asset," Wilson added.
NT/P82, located in the Bonaparte Basin, is an exploration license in which Magellan owns a 100% interest.
The water depths over the license are relatively shallow, ranging from 55 to 400ft, the company said.
Under the terms of the license and pending the results of the seismic survey, Magellan is required to drill a well by May 2015.
The company plans to spend a total of about $4.5m on shooting, processing, and analyzing the seismic survey data.
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