Rift Helium (AIM:RIFT) told investors it has started mobilising its fully funded 3D seismic programme at the Upepo Project, its flagship helium licence in Tanzania's Rukwa Basin.
The move follows receipt of the Environmental Impact Assessment certificate, with field acquisition set to begin in the fourth quarter.
The AIM-listed explorer, which entered the Rukwa Basin after helium had already been demonstrated by other operators, is building on existing 2D seismic data that has identified five exploration leads, mostly on its eastern licence, PL12093/2022.
The 3D survey will map subsurface structures in greater detail than the existing 2D data, helping Rift rank targets and refine well locations before it commits capital to drilling.
The company plans to use lightweight portable sensors and smaller field crews, an approach designed to limit ground disturbance and reduce health, safety and environmental exposure.
Results are expected to feed into an updated independent resource assessment targeted for the first quarter of 2027, building on Rift's current estimate of approximately 19 billion cubic feet of helium on a mid-case basis and 41 billion cubic feet on a mean basis.
"We are progressing through a disciplined sequence: permit, map, rank and drill, with each step designed to reduce uncertainty before the next capital decision," said Charles FitzRoy, chief executive of Rift Helium.
The company remains on track for its first exploration well in the first half of 2027, part of a planned two-well drilling campaign at Upepo.
News Intelligence what this means for the company
Rift Helium has begun mobilising its 3D seismic survey at Upepo following environmental approval, with field acquisition starting in Q4 2026. The survey will refine drilling targets ahead of a planned two-well campaign in H1 2027 and feed into a resource update in Q1 2027; this execution step removes a near-term permitting risk and advances the company toward its first exploration well on the timeline set out after its April AIM debut.
Rift Helium is progressing through its disciplined pre-drill sequence on schedule and with capital already secured from its £8.1 million IPO. The 3D seismic and resource update will be the key data inputs for the investment decision on drilling; execution risk now shifts from permitting to field operations and the quality of subsurface mapping.
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