Chevron told to boost gas supply as reserve of Bibiyana doubles

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M Azizur Rahman
The government has asked Chevron to boost supply from Bibiyana after it officially accepted latest reserve projection of the gas-field that doubled the amount of hydrocarbon available in the structure, officials said Saturday.
The acceptance clears the way for digging of new wells in the field and daily additional supply of around 600 million cubic feet of gas within the next two years at a time when the country was desperately searching for new energy source.
The US oil giant Chevron early last year said the Bibiyana gas field in northeastern Bangladesh has a 5.50 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) new recoverable gas, up from the previous projection of 2.40 TCF.
Dallas-based petroleum consulting firm DeGolyer & McNaughton (D&M) made the estimation last year, putting proven reserve of gas at 4.40 Tcf, which is also more than double from the previous estimate.
"We have accepted Chevron's latest estimates on Bibiyana reserve conducted by the D&M," Petrobangla chairman Dr Hossain Monsur told the FE Saturday.
He said the state-owned Petrobangla accepted the new estimation after scrutinizing the data and relevant information in line with a provision of the production sharing contract (PSC) signed between Petrobangla and Chevron.
"We have also asked Chevron to expedite development work of the Bibiyana gas-field to extract new gas in a bid to meet the present supply shortfall," Dr Monsur said.
Dr. Monsur hoped that Chevron would be able to supply additional gas from Bibiyana field after digging new wells within the next two years.
Chevron has informed Petrobangla that it would be able to produce around 1,130 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) of gas, almost double the current production rate of around 680 mmcfd once it develops more wells, a senior official said.
Bibiyana has a long life that will help Bangladesh meet its energy demand for several decades to come, the company said, adding that new reserve could also go up by another 25 per cent.
Experts have hailed the extra findings at Bibiyana "as the best news for the country's energy-starved industry" as the new reserve would bring some respites in the current energy crisis.
"It will ensure another four years of gas supply in the country. It is a big sigh of relief for our industrial sector," said leading energy expert Professor M Tamim of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology.
The gas field in Bibiyana was discovered in 1999 by the now defunct US energy company Occidental. The company later sold its stakes to another American company, Unocal.
Chevron became its owner after it bought Unocal's global operations in 2006.
Chevron holds interests in three production sharing contracts in Bangladesh, owning rights to explore gas in more than 10,000 square kilometres (2.47 million acres).
Chevron Bangladesh has a 98 percent interest in Bibiyana, Jalalabad and Moulavi Bazar fields. The company supplies around 250 mmcf of gas a day from the two fields.
Chevron also has a 43 percent interest in Block 7 in southern Bangladesh where the company conducted seismic survey in 2006.
Gas fields in Bangladesh currently produce around 1,980 mmcfd of gas against demand for over 2,200 mmcfd, with Chevron making up around half of the total production.