Polda Basin, Eyre Peninsula
Australia's most viable location for a world-class 90-day Strategic Crude Reserve - developed as a Public Private Partnership.
Project Overview
EnergySouth, under its MOU with entX, holds the regulated substance storage tenements for the Polda Basin salt caverns (GSEL 781 and GSEL 784) - covering over 5,000 km² of the Eyre Peninsula, South Australia.
Sufficient research and preliminary exploration has been conducted to confidently identify this as Australia's optimal location for a world-leading 90-day Strategic Crude Reserve. The project has the potential to be structured as a Public Private Partnership (PPP) with the Australian Government, ready to advance to development phase.
Levelised cost of storage of $10–20/bbl - approximately 5× cheaper than above-ground tank farms
Stored 500m underground under 1,500 PSI cavern pressure - inherently secure, minimal surface footprint
Analogous to the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve - a proven model operating at 714 million bbl in Gulf Coast salt caverns
Polda Basin — Solution-Mined Salt Cavern Storage
The Case for Salt Caverns
The Polda Basin is Australia's only geological formation of this scale suited to solution-mined salt cavern storage. Its unique combination of location, geology, and existing infrastructure creates an unmatched opportunity for national-scale liquid fuel security.
Located >500m below surface with minimal above-ground infrastructure, salt cavern storage is inherently resistant to natural disaster, sabotage, and geopolitical disruption. Caverns are sealed with inert gas under 1,500 PSI - as secure as oil stored in glass.
At $10–20/bbl levelised cost of storage, the Polda Basin represents Australia's least-cost large liquid fuel storage opportunity - approximately 5× cheaper than conventional above-ground steel tank farms, without the ongoing maintenance liability.
Salt cavern strategic reserves are the established global standard - the US SPR holds 714 million barrels in similar Gulf Coast formations. North America, Europe, and parts of Asia have all deployed this technology at national scale with proven long-term performance.
Infrastructure & Routes
The basin's proximity to the South Australian coastline enables optimal VLCC loading and unloading. Three potential SPM (Single Point Mooring) routes have been identified - Arno Bay (110–120 km), Cowell (150 km), and Port Bonython (250 km) - providing redundancy and flexibility for crude oil import and export operations.
Polda Basin Crude Storage Area - Pipeline & Single Point Mooring Route Options
Engineering Breakdown
15 solution-mined caverns in a 10–15 km² grid. 200–400m spacing. Dual wells per cavern for simultaneous injection and extraction.
Est. A$2.0B~120 km dual pipeline from Arno Bay. 12–24" diameter at ~$1.5M/km. Capacity of 0.75–1.2 Mbbl/day to meet peak demand.
Est. A$140–150MOffshore Single Point Mooring (SPM) for Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC, ~300k DWT). SPM systems are common, cost-effective, and proven globally.
Est. A$190–290MCentral pumping and brine management system, continuous monitoring, access roads, and above-ground utilities to support full operations.
Est. A$50–70MTenure & Geology
EnergySouth (under entX MOU) holds Gas Storage Exploration Licences GSEL 781 and GSEL 784, covering over 5,000 km² of the Eyre Peninsula. The basin was initially discovered during seismic and gravity testing in the 1980s; data has since been updated to 2020 standards with geochemical and geological review completed.
Immediate next steps include 2 further exploration wells, followed by micro-seismic testing and injection well drilling. The tenement area also sits adjacent to existing 132kV overhead transmission infrastructure and operational wind farms.
Polda Basin — GSEL 781 & GSEL 784 Gas Storage Exploration Licences
Developed in partnership with the Federal and South Australian Governments under a PPP model - a procurement structure well established with government infrastructure agencies. EnergySouth operates the facility in perpetual readiness, with government receiving asset ownership after 20–30 years.
Development phase: developer fee. Operating phase: annual service fee for maintaining perpetual readiness, plus storage and pumping fees. Capacity can also be sold to oil companies and others as a physical fuel hedging instrument - generating commercial returns alongside national service obligations.
Initial Phase
Initial funding of A$15M is required for drilling and re-mapping/seismic testing to confirm crude oil storage parameters. EnergySouth is seeking government and institutional partners to progress this project to development approval.