Jade Gas Holdings Ltd. will explore for natural gas in the south Gobi region of Mongolia.

During the 2023 exploration program, the company will drill four exploration wells targeting three coal seams of interest in the northern extension of the Red Lake area within its TTCBM Project permit. The drilling program is expected to begin in March.

Successful drilling will expand the size of the current 246 bcf unrisked gross 2C contingent resources, the company said.

At the same time, Jade will test Red Lake-5 and Red Lake-7 to provide data about permeability that will be used to design the pilot production program later in the year. Red Lake-5 was drilled to a total depth (TD) of 687 m and intersected 36 m of gassy coal in the target coal seams. Red Lake-7 reached TD at 501 m with 62 m of gassy coal intersected.

These two wells will undergo further evaluation through flow testing and analysis for up to 90 days with flows expected to be primarily water. Testing equipment setup is under way, with the test expected to start this month.