BAPEX to start gas exploration in blocks 8 and 11 next winter

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FHM Humayan Kabir
The Bangladesh Petroleum exploration company (BAPEX) is likely to start exploration works in gas blocks 8 and 11 from next winter aimed at tapping potential gas reserves to meet the growing energy demand, officials said Thursday.
"We are working to start the exploration works from next winter," a senior energy division official told the FE.
They also have plans to hire a foreign contractor, if needed, to start the exploration activities from next winter for locating gas reserves, he added.
"If the BAPEX fails to start the work from next winter due to its limited capacity, we are thinking to appoint a second party to conduct the survey to detect gas reserve," he said.
The onshore gas blocks 8 and 11 are situated in greater Mymensingh district where BAPEX expects to find some significant gas reserves.
"We are trying to engage BAPEX to explore for gas. We are hopeful the company will be able to start survey soon," energy secretary Mohammad Mohsin told the FE.
He said the government was committed to boost gas production considering the growing demand that resulted in an energy crunch.
A senior Petrobangla official said they had sent a recommendation to the energy division to a hire contractor, if needed, to start exploration works in the untouched blocks 8 and 11 amid prevailing energy crisis.
"Since the BAPEX at this moment has lack of adequate drilling rigs and other equipment to start exploration works from next winter, we are thinking about the possibility of appointing second party to do the job," he said.
"Survey at the two potential onshore blocks is a better option at this moment to tap for new gas and oil," he said.
Amid growing crisis of gas in the country, the government has taken initiatives to boost its gas exploration and production activities in the untapped areas in the country.
The Petrobangla has said the country's proven gas reserve will start to deplete in 2012 before drying up completely in 2019 unless new discoveries are made.
Hundreds of factories have failed to go into production due to energy crunch, although the investors have spent hundreds of millions of dollars to build up the facilities.
The senior Petrobangla official said they were hopeful that gas reserves could be discovered in the two untapped gas blocks of 8 and 11 if the seismic survey is done.
The last caretaker government has allocated Tk32 billion funds for the country's lone petroleum exploration and production company BAPEX to support it to explore and produce more gas and oil.
The World Bank has recently agreed to fund exploration of natural gas in Bangladesh for the first time, in a move seen as crucial to tackle the country's growing energy crunch.
The energy division requested the global lender to provide funds to BAPEX for more exploration works.
"We'll conduct geological and geophysical surveys including seismic survey at those prospective gas blocks in greater Mymensingh district," a senior BAPEX official said.
BAPEX has planned to conduct 2400-line kilometre two-dimensional (2D) seismic survey, geophysical and geological studies and delineation of drillable subsurface structure to increase reserves from the detailed survey and study at the gas blocks.