Geltwood Beach No. 1 Well: Otway Basin Drilling Summary and Results

Geltwood Beach No. 1 Well was drilled to 12,300 feet in 1963 to test for hydrocarbons in the Otway Basin of South Australia. Drilling Contractors (Australia) Pty Ltd conducted a full program of logging, testing, and coring, penetrating sequences from Miocene to Lower Cretaceous sediments. The well was plugged and abandoned as a dry hole after drillstem tests yielded only gas-cut salty water and mud.

Use Cases

• Analyze stratigraphic sequences and sediment thicknesses based on the described Miocene to Cretaceous layers.
• Model hydrocarbon potential and seal integrity based on the described structural setting on the Geltwood Anticline.
• Study drilling outcomes and gas shows based on the recorded traces of gas from 4500 feet to total depth.
• Research historical petroleum exploration subsidized under the Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1959-1961.

Strengths

• Detailed operational summary includes specific dates (22 August 1963 to 10 November 1963) and a precise total depth of 12,300 feet.
• Description provides a quantified stratigraphic column with thicknesses for Recent, Miocene-Eocene, and Cretaceous sediments.
• Context includes the well's specific geographic location approximately 7.5 miles southwest of Millicent.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data freshness should be verified; the last metadata update is 2026-06-04 but the underlying data is from 1963.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network via data.gov.au

Collection Method

Drilling, logging, testing, and coring operations conducted by Drilling Contractors (Australia) Pty Ltd.

Time Range

1963 (drilling period: 22 August to 10 November)

Freshness

Metadata last updated 2026-06-04 10:12:37.794858; underlying data is historical from 1963.

Geography

Otway Basin, South Australia, on the Geltwood Anticline near Millicent