Jadestone Energy, an independent oil and gas production company focused on the Asia-Pacific region, provides the following update on operations at the Montara Venture FPSO offshore Australia.As previously reported on 31 July 2023, production at Montara was temporarily shut in following a gas alarm within the FPSO’s 4S ballast water tank. Since then, tank 4S has been emptied and cleaned, with an inspection commencing on 8 August 2023. The initial inspection has identified the location of a small defect between tank 4S and oil cargo tank 5C, which poses no safety or structural risk, nor any risk of a hydrocarbon leak to sea.The Company is now focused on the following activities to address the defect in tank 4S, including:

• final inspections in ballast water tank 4P prior to returning this tank to service as part of the overall ballast and stability requirements for the FPSO;
• offloading crude oil from tank 5C to allow for cleaning and access to permit an inspection; and
• re-entry to 4S to finalise the inspection of the tank and carry out the necessary repair.

The Company continues to keep key stakeholders, including the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (“NOPSEMA”) and its reserve-based lending (“RBL”) facility banks, regularly updated on these activities. The RBL includes the requirement for borrowing base assets, such as Montara, not to have production interrupted for a continuous period of 60 days or more. The Company will also be working with the RBL banks to assess how the shut in might impact the clauses and covenant under the RBL facility.

KeyFacts Energy: Jadestone Energy Australia country profile