What an interesting day for NWE. Jumped out of the blocks for a...

What an interesting day for NWE. Jumped out of the blocks for a not too shabby 25m shares traded by 12pm and a healthy 0.4c push upwards... someone was clearly in a hurry to either get on board or get some more for the kitty. It doesn't take much to move the needle does it.

I agree with ebit, I reckon we might be hearing some news very soon re locking in our drill rig. I agree that it is likely to be the trusty 970 rig, coming back to the PB, and it will likely be a "sharing contract" again with STX as they are planning on drilling 2 holes in 1H 23, which would work well with NWE/MIN drilling our 2 holes, NED-1 pre Xmas and LD-2 post Xmas. After our 2 holes the rig can go to STX and when they are done it can come back to us for our 3rd planned exploration hole in Q2-Q4... location tbc but I reckon it could be Lead E (please be Lead E Iain). Will know for sure once the 2D/3D seismic comes in.

Top 20 just updated, more accumulation at play. Notable movements are:

• Netwealth Investments adding another 6.4m
• McCusker Holdings are sitting tight...

Let's see if the 30m+ traded today does anything to the Top 20. Keep an eye out for any large-ish SP cross trades. A tell tale sign that significant positions are being taken.

Top 20 now up to 42.43% SOI. You can check it out here http://norwestenergy.com.au/company/capital-structure/

Interesting to see these comments today from Minister for Resources Madeleine King: “Australia has the capacity to continue to be an energy export leader, at the same time as developing a domestic offshore carbon capture and storage (CCS) industry. CCS is a safe, key proven technology that can support the petroleum sector in its low carbon transition,” Minister King said. “As we continue to take action to reduce emissions, I will work to ensure Australia remains an attractive destination for investment while maintaining our position as a world leader in the resources sector.”

Whilst it is comforting to hear the new Fed Govt's energy narrative, this also provides a real opportunity for NWE to meet strict carbon abatement initiatives. Remember NWE has previously flagged LD is a possibility for CCS, a very important component to ensure the development of our massive resource is not rail-roaded.

GLTA