Two of the most important characteristics of an underground storage reservoir are its capacity to hold natural gas for future use and the rate at which the stored gas can be withdrawn.

Access to the proposed Albury store will be provided by drilling four new wells from our existing well site at Albury. Drilling into the reservoir and extracting oil and gas reduces the residual quantity of oil and gas in the reservoir and the pressure under which it is held, creating what is termed a depleted reservoir. It is the depleted reservoir which provides the capacity for gas storage.

Gas storage involves extracting gas from, as well as injecting gas into, a depleted reservoir, thus cycling the pressure within the reservoir. To ensure that such pressure cycles do not affect the integrity of the porous rock or the cap rock, checks are undertaken by independent expert consultants.

At all stages of a gas store’s design, construction and operation, risk assessments are conducted to make certain that at no time safety is compromised.