All about Po Valley Energy's (ASX: PVE) Selva Malvezzi production concession in Italy

Highlights

• Po Valley Energy Limited is working on its Italian gas exploration projects to become a formidable domestic producer in Italy
• PVE is listed on the ASX, with the management team operating from Rome, Italy
• The company’s projects include the Selva Malvezzi concession, and Teodorico (AR94PY), with the former to begin production in the near term

Po Valley (ASX: PVE), the Australian-listed emerging gas producer in Italy, is focusing on its Selva Malvezzi production concession (Selva Project) to kickstart production from the Podere Maiar 1 (PM-1) well in the near term. PVE's other interests include the fully owned Teodorico (AR94PY) licence. The gas explorer, with its assets in Italy, is looking to tap the opportunity of being a domestic producer of natural gas in a country that is heavily dependent on imports.

Today, let us quickly take a look at Po Valley's onshore natural gas field Selva, where the total exploration permit spans more than 500 sq.km.

Selva Project

Located in the Emilia Romagna region, Selva is one of the primary near-term goals of Po Valley. Within the exploration permit of over 500 sq. km, the Selva Malvezzi production concession measures over 80 sq. km. Notably, it is within the Podere Maiar exploration licence and is counted among one of the biggest gas discoveries in Northern Italy. The Company is working aggressively on its Podere Maiar 1 (PM-1) well.

The final production concession was received in mid-2022, and the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) approval is also in place for the Selva Project. As per PVE, the Company is in the process of constructing a processing plant, alongside other surface processing facilities. The Company is also constructing a one-kilometre-long export pipeline to the SNAM grid.

Source: PVE ASX Investor Presentation

Drilling program

Po Valley has successfully intersected gas reservoirs in C1 and C2 sands. It has also been identified that the gas is dry (99.5% Biogenic Methane). No hydrocarbon liquids imply reduction in surface processing requirements, which is also an operational and cost advantage for PVE. The Company would begin production from the C2 reservoir, which would be followed by C1. The Company expects the production rate to be approximately 80,000scm per day.

Notably, the facility is in close proximity to the SNAM pipeline, which is an Italian gas distribution network. Po Valley also states that the Project is a "repeatable" and "low cost" gas play, and there is potential at other sites (Selva North and South, and Selva East) close to PM-1. It is to be noted that, Po Valley’s team has been operating in Italy for over two decades.

Source: PVE ASX Investor Presentation

The ASX-listed shares of PVE last closed at AU$0.082 on 27 April 2023, with market cap of over AU$91 million.