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The Project – The Montana Helium Fairway
Why Montana?
A helium system extending from Saskatchewan to Wyoming. The ‘Montana Helium Fairway’ is named after several helium discoveries made in the Cambrian
Flathead Formation on the western edge of
the Williston Basin
- Hosts helium production from North American Helium and Weil Group
- Helium is generated in ancient crust and migrates along major structures
- Nitrogen gas is an important exploration indicator and all helium discoveries on the Flathead Fairway are associated with nitrogen
The Ingomar Dome Project
The Ingomar Dome has the correct geology for a helium discovery, including:
- Identified gas: Historic drilling and/or testing has identified gas in all target reservoir horizons. Assayed at ~81% Nitrogen, the gas was never tested for helium.
- Thick sediment: Reservoir sandstones with proven sealing units in multiple horizons.
- Large trap: Large closure of 16,512 acres mapped at surface, in seismic and in drilling.
- Adjacent to major structure: Located on the upthrown side of the deep-seated Sumatra Thrust, which acts as a conduit for helium migration.
- Helium release: Radiometric studies have identified high U and Th anomalies in basement, signifying high geothermal gradient necessary to release helium.
Stacked Reservoir
Multiple targets with identified gas to be tested by a single appraisal well
Amsden Formation
- Hillison #1 tested 195ft column of non-flammable gas at high flow rate of 5,600Mcf/day and minimal pressure loss (<7.5%) over 30 days
- 79.2-82.6% Nitrogen – not assayed for Helium
Charles Formation
- Froze #24-8 and Treasure #18-1 both tested non-flammable gas at a low flow rate from a total column of 145-175ft
- 80.4% Nitrogen – not assayed for Helium
Flathead Formation
- Main regional reservoir hosting primary helium production
- Treasure #18-1 logged 10-26ft of gas in the Flathead sandstone but did not conduct a flow test over the interval
Pre-Cambrian
- Fractured basement play directly above thrust
fault – never been drilled
Proven Gas
Identified Helium Anomaly
- Nitrogen wells in Montana that have been tested have typically been found to contain helium
- Gas-in-soil analysis over the Ingomar Dome identified a high-helium anomaly close to the Hillison-1 wellhead
- Anonymously high helium concentrations in the soil around the Hillison wellbore provided evidence that there could be helium in the reservoirs in the subsurface
- Ryder Scott analysed helium concentrations from analogous wells across Montana, Wyoming and Saskatchewan and probabilistically modelled grade as:
- P10 = 0.88%
- P50 = 1.52%
- P90 = 2.20%
- Helium grade above 0.5% He is considered highly commercial by management
Development Pathway
No further geological work to be undertaken ahead of drilling at Ingomar Dome.
Target Depth of ~8,000ft (~2,500m) is average for North American drilling. Appraisal well drilling is planned for Q3 2024 using rig and services already available within Montana.
Helix management have experience commissioning and constructing processing plants and selling helium from Mankota, Canada. They will target sales direct to Tier 2 Distributors and end-users, bypassing industrial majors to ensure best price to Helix Exploration. There is also the option to lease the plant from the manufacturer, which would further reduce capital requirements.
