Southwest Bairnsdale No. 1 Well: Geological Summary and Drilling Results, 1963

January to February 1963 drilling operation for the Southwest Bairnsdale No. 1 well in the Gippsland Basin, Victoria. The well was drilled to a total depth of 3926 feet by Reading and Bates (Australia) Pty Ltd for Woodside (Lakes Entrance) Oil Company N.L. and Arco Limited. It achieved its objectives of obtaining stratigraphic data and testing hydrocarbon potential, but was plugged and abandoned as a dry hole.

Use Cases

• Analyze historical drilling operations and outcomes based on the detailed timeline and technical results described.
• Study the stratigraphic sequence of the Gippsland Basin based on the described sediment layers and depths.
• Assess hydrocarbon exploration potential in specific geological formations based on the reported porosity, permeability, and test results.
• Research the application of the Petroleum Search Subsidy Act based on the mention of subsidized drilling.

Strengths

• Provides precise temporal coverage: drilling commenced on 8th January, 1963 and was completed on 14th February, 1963.
• Contains specific technical details: total depth of 3926 feet, formation test over interval 2522 to 2559 feet.
• Clearly states the drilling objectives and final outcome, including the absence of hydrocarbon shows.

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Data may reflect geographic/temporal bias inherent to a single, historical well report.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Drilling operation with a full programme of coring and logging.

Time Range

1963

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-20 01:00:32.873891; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Gippsland Basin, Victoria, Australia, about 15 miles west-south-west of Bairnsdale.