Cairn starts exploration work at Magnama in Oct
Monday, 31 August 2009
FHM Humayan Kabir
The Scottish oil company Cairn Energy will start exploration and development work at the Magnama offshore structure in October aiming to produce more than 100 million cubic feet of gas per day (mmcfd), officials said late last week.
The firm has already informed Bangladesh's state-owned energy corporation Petrobangla about the preliminary project development plan, a Petrobangla official said.
About 100 mmcfd of gas is expected to be produced from the Magnama structure, he added.
The Edinburgh-based energy company would invest US$250 million to US$600 million depending on the dispersion of gas and the volume of reserves to produce gas from the Magnama structure from 2012 onwards, he told the FE.
Cairn in its preliminary work-plan said there is a reserve of nearly 790 billion cubic feet (bcf) of gas at Magnama, about 60 kilometres south of the port city Chittagong, in the block-16 in the Bay of Bengal.
The Cairn Energy is going to resume its exploration work at Magnama and Hatia after one year of suspension as the government has recently given permission to sell gas from both the fields to a third party within the country.
Cairn, operator of the country's lone offshore Sangu field, last year suspended exploration there in the face of what it called Petrobangla's reluctance to hiking gas price or sale to private users.
The government for the first time has allowed Cairn to sell gas to a third party. All other local and foreign energy companies operating here are bound to sell gas to the state-owned energy corporation.
"Cairn Energy will start its 3D seismic survey at Magnama and Hatia from October this year," Petrobangla Chairman Muktadir Ali told the FE.
The Scottish oil firm early next month would make a presentation before Petrobangla on its final work-plan for the Magnama field development, he added.
Petrobangla said the resumption of gas exploration and development work at Magnama would help reduce the energy supply crunch in the country, particularly in Chittagong.
Many old and new industries in the port city and its adjacent areas have been remaining idle for long only due to the shortage of gas supply.
Another senior Petrobangla official said Cairn would start three-dimensional (3D) survey from October this year. "Then it will drill an exploratory well in the dry season of 2010 and go for development work to produce gas from 2012," he mentioned.
He said: "The firm from its 2D survey, conducted last dry season, has estimated a reserve of nearly 790 bcf of gas at Magnama in the Bay."
In its work-plan, the Scottish company said it would initially supply 100 to 120 million cubic feet (mmcf) per day to the national grid from the Magnama field, 12 km north-west of the Sangu gas field, he said.
The official said Cairn would first develop the Magnama field and utilise the Sangu field's existing pipeline to take the gas to the process plant onshore.
"It will utilise the government's transmission line to supply gas to consumers in the country," he said.
The company has a plan to augment gas production to 200 mmcfd from both Magnama and Hatia structures after successful drilling at Magnama first, he added.
The Scottish oil company Cairn Energy will start exploration and development work at the Magnama offshore structure in October aiming to produce more than 100 million cubic feet of gas per day (mmcfd), officials said late last week.
The firm has already informed Bangladesh's state-owned energy corporation Petrobangla about the preliminary project development plan, a Petrobangla official said.
About 100 mmcfd of gas is expected to be produced from the Magnama structure, he added.
The Edinburgh-based energy company would invest US$250 million to US$600 million depending on the dispersion of gas and the volume of reserves to produce gas from the Magnama structure from 2012 onwards, he told the FE.
Cairn in its preliminary work-plan said there is a reserve of nearly 790 billion cubic feet (bcf) of gas at Magnama, about 60 kilometres south of the port city Chittagong, in the block-16 in the Bay of Bengal.
The Cairn Energy is going to resume its exploration work at Magnama and Hatia after one year of suspension as the government has recently given permission to sell gas from both the fields to a third party within the country.
Cairn, operator of the country's lone offshore Sangu field, last year suspended exploration there in the face of what it called Petrobangla's reluctance to hiking gas price or sale to private users.
The government for the first time has allowed Cairn to sell gas to a third party. All other local and foreign energy companies operating here are bound to sell gas to the state-owned energy corporation.
"Cairn Energy will start its 3D seismic survey at Magnama and Hatia from October this year," Petrobangla Chairman Muktadir Ali told the FE.
The Scottish oil firm early next month would make a presentation before Petrobangla on its final work-plan for the Magnama field development, he added.
Petrobangla said the resumption of gas exploration and development work at Magnama would help reduce the energy supply crunch in the country, particularly in Chittagong.
Many old and new industries in the port city and its adjacent areas have been remaining idle for long only due to the shortage of gas supply.
Another senior Petrobangla official said Cairn would start three-dimensional (3D) survey from October this year. "Then it will drill an exploratory well in the dry season of 2010 and go for development work to produce gas from 2012," he mentioned.
He said: "The firm from its 2D survey, conducted last dry season, has estimated a reserve of nearly 790 bcf of gas at Magnama in the Bay."
In its work-plan, the Scottish company said it would initially supply 100 to 120 million cubic feet (mmcf) per day to the national grid from the Magnama field, 12 km north-west of the Sangu gas field, he said.
The official said Cairn would first develop the Magnama field and utilise the Sangu field's existing pipeline to take the gas to the process plant onshore.
"It will utilise the government's transmission line to supply gas to consumers in the country," he said.
The company has a plan to augment gas production to 200 mmcfd from both Magnama and Hatia structures after successful drilling at Magnama first, he added.