Article originally published by The Courier Mail.

Shares in Omega Oil & Gas, which counts the billionaire Brian Flannery’s family as major shareholders, have been on a tear this week thanks to the discovery of a potentially bigger reserve in the Surat Basin than previously thought.

Preliminary analysis released by the company this week shows the company has “intersected a thicker gas column than initially forecast”.

The Flannery family tipped $5m into Omega’s initial public offering last year and since then shares have shot up more than 72 per cent. The shares ended the week 60 per cent higher at 31c.