Origin Energy and Falcon Oil and Gas say the Kyalla 117 well, south-east of Daly Waters, was drilled to 1895 metres deep.

Gas was found in the deep shale rocks and now the companies plan to drill horizontally to about a kilometre and frack to test for production quantities.

The exploration and testing of the well will continue during the wet season, which has surprised many people.

The Pepper scientific inquiry into the industry recommended restrictions on the operations of drilling during the wet season, especially the transport of fracking chemicals.

There are also concerns about the potential "over-topping" of onsite ponds used to store waste fluids at the drilling sites.

In a community update on the onshore gas industry, the NT Government yesterday said Santos "has started to hydraulically fracture Tanumbirini 1 and is looking to start drilling Tanumbirini 2 and Inacumba in 2020".

Opponents to the industry plan to protest outside Parliament in Darwin today.

They claim the Government has failed to finalise land access agreement legislation before gas companies started to frack.

Landholder concerns have been heightened with gas company Santos already fracking and Origin about to commence and intending to continue to frack throughout the wet, despite the ongoing lack of land access laws, according to the Lock the Gate Alliance.

Kyalla 117 was the first well drilled since the NT lifted a moratorium on onshore gas exploration has been drilled in the Beetaloo Basin.

Santos and other energy companies are also rushing to drill their test wells.

Millions of dollars are being spent and the government says hundreds of jobs are being created in these early days of the industry.

Kyalla 117 is the first of two new wells to be drilled by Origin to help the energy companies determine the potential of resources in the Beetaloo Basin.

Besides finding gas, the well importantly confirmed the beliefs of geologists the bands of shale continued deep under the Beetaloo from other wells, particularly the Amungee well to the north.

It was Origin's fracking of Amungee in 2016 which excited the entire industry about the potential of the NT's onshore gas industry.

Falcon's chief executive Philip O'Quigley said the preliminary results from Kyalla 117 represented "excellent re-start" to exploration.

"Whilst it is still early days to full understand reservoir characteristics and completion quality, drilling results to date are very encouraging."

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