Studies on natural hydrogen in Nova Scotia (Springhill and Apple River corridors)

Exploration company focused on natural hydrogen and critical mineral assets, with a strategic focus on the Cumberland Basin natural hydrogen district in Nova Scotia.

natural hydrogen exploration

Public research university in Québec specializing in applied research, including earth sciences and energy resources.

A field technique used by First Atlas and its partners in which near-surface soil gas is sampled and analysed to detect elevated hydrogen concentrations that may indicate leakage from deeper subsurface sources.[1][2][10]

An exploration method where gases entrained in drilling mud are analysed in real time or via samples to quantify hydrogen content, providing direct evidence of subsurface hydrogen presence along a borehole.[8][9]

The play-based natural hydrogen targeting framework is an exploration methodology adapted from unconventional hydrocarbon plays, emphasizing system-scale evaluation of hydrogen occurrences using metrics such as areal footprint, net structural thickness, and stacked-domain density.[1] Rather than focusing solely on individual anomalies or wells, it conceptualizes natural hydrogen as a continuous resource distributed along structurally pervasive corridors, enabling basin-level prospectivity assessments.[1][9]

Springhill and Southampton licence areas, Nova Scotia

First Atlas’s exploration initiative in the Southampton licence area of Nova Scotia, where QIMC’s play-based framework is being applied to define and prioritise hydrogen drill targets.

QIMC’s exploration project near West Advocate, Nova Scotia, where drilling has reported a 10.77% hydrogen mud-gas reading and a 243 m hydrogen-bearing interval that underpin the regional structural hydrogen model.

First Atlas’s onshore exploration project in the Springhill area of Nova Scotia focused on identifying structurally controlled natural hydrogen accumulations using soil-gas surveys and QIMC’s R2G2 framework.