• Drilling operations at Wombat-5 well, side-track-2 (ST-2) in Gippsland Basin, Victoria have resumed
• Drilling reached 1100 mRT, approximately 260 meters above the target Strzelecki Formation
• New go-forward arrangements involve building redundancy in the drilling system and additional processes to mitigate circulation issues

Lakes Blue Energy has provided an update on the drilling operations at the Wombat-5 well, side-track-2 (ST-2) in the Gippsland Basin, Victoria. As of 8:00 am AEST on 24 August 2025, the well had reached a depth of 1100 mRT, with 72 hours of progress covering 630 meters. The company is pleased to advise that drilling operations resumed at 9:00 pm on 22 August 2025 after the company and the contractor reached an agreement on a go-forward arrangement aimed at preventing recurrence of mud circulation problems. The agreed arrangements involve building substantial redundancy into the drilling system as well as additional processes to mitigate the chance of a reoccurrence of the circulation issue. The contractor also offered, and the company accepted, a fixed price arrangement for completion of drilling of the well. The company is currently drilling ahead at 1100 mRT, approximately 260 meters above the target Strzelecki Formation.