Latest funding kick starts high resolution monitoring programme at CO₂CRC’s Otway Project Site

The CO₂CRC Otway Project site is looking very active above ground at the moment with a drilling rig onsite and a monitoring system being installed. This next phase of monitoring is part of CO₂CRC’s new programme of research undertaken as part of the major funding received last year from the Australian and Victorian governments, the Australian coal industry’s COAL21 fund, and CO₂CRC members.

CO₂CRC CEO, Tania Constable, said “Continued improvement of our monitoring research at the CO₂CRC Otway Project site is a key part of our overall program. 

“The CO₂CRC Otway Project site attracts scientists and engineers from around the world because it provides them with the opportunity to undertake research in real world conditions.”

The drilling rig has been brought in to access a deeper part of the well to inject CO₂ and install high-resolution monitoring equipment. This latest equipment will allow scientists to understand how the injected CO₂ will stay within the rock formation. Using the same well for multiple experiments has a number of advantages including minimising impact on the landscape and reducing cost to the project.

In addition, approximately 900 small geophones, which are slightly larger than a cricket ball, along with 11 kilometres of fibre optic cable, will be installed across an area of 1 square kilometre. The geophones are buried at a depth of 4 metres to improve the sound signal, which can otherwise be affected by noise from wind, local traffic and even heavy stock movements.The rig will stay onsite until the well work is completed. Placing the geophones will continue through to mid March, after which time the above ground activity will significantly reduce.