Future plans from 2027

Gas to flow for at least 10 years from 2027

The drilling rig from Jaidhaustal will be set up this year either in St. Georgen im Attergau or in Straßwalchen.(Bild: FOTOKERSCHI.AT)

Following confirmation of the gas discovery under Molln (Upper Austria), the deposit is now being evaluated. A decision will then be made as to whether the natural resource will be extracted from the ground. In the meantime, the company is considering a subsequent use of the pumped-out rock - because there would then be room for other gas.

If everything goes according to ADX's plan, it will be three years before the first gas found under Molln is used up. "But we assume that project opponents will want to delay this with submissions, and an environmental impact assessment cannot be ruled out," says spokesman Wilfried Seywald.

Next week will be wiser
In the event that everything runs smoothly and 24 billion cubic meters of gas are actually available, the schedule looks like this: The drilling rig and all other equipment must be removed from the drilling site in Jaidhaustal and the borehole sealed by the end of March. Until then, tests will be carried out to determine the nature of the gas-bearing rock and the ability to extract the gas.

Only one well planned this year - not in Molln
The summer is a rest period for the vegetation, while applications are being made in the background to be allowed to drill again from the fall. "Four to five more boreholes will be necessary," says Seywald. However, the drilling rig in Molln will most likely not be set up again until 2025, as ADX only has one more well planned this year: either in Sankt Georgen im Attergau or in Straßwalchen.

Injecting hydrogen into "empty" rock
Mining under Molln could begin in 2027 and is expected to take ten to 15 years. After around three years, experts expect that the peak of extraction - the gas will flow out of the earth under its own pressure - will be reached and then decrease. This is why it will take so long to exploit the deposit, which is thought to contain three times the amount of gas consumed in Austria. "The gas is mainly destined for the Austrian market. It would be economically stupid to transport it far," says ADX, which is already thinking about the subsequent use of the gas discovery: hydrogen could be injected and stored here at a depth of 1500 meters. "The storage of carbon dioxide is not being considered here," says Seywald.