Chevron asked to increase gas output by 500 mmcfd
M Azizur Rahman | Sunday, 20 March 2011
M Azizur Rahman
The government has asked the US oil giant Chevron to augment daily gas output by at least 500 million cubic feet (mmcfd) by next year to meet the country's mounting energy demand and help boost national economy. "We have asked Chevron to ramp up natural gas production from its gas fields at least by 500 mmcfd by 2012," Petrobangla chairman Dr Hussain Monsur told the FE. He expressed the hope that Chevron would increase the gas output from three of its producing gas fields to reach the targeted production. Officials said Chevron's additional gas production will help ease the country's acute gas crisis. Country's average daily gas production is now hovering around 1980 mmcfd against the demand for over 2,500 mmcfd. The state-owned Petrobangla has suspended new gas connections to industries since July 2009 across the country affecting the industrial growth badly. Gas connections to households remained suspended since July 2010. Gas rationing has been rampant and compressed natural gas (CNG) filling stations are kept closed four hours a day to cope with the gas supply shortfall. The Chevron is now carrying out necessary exploration and drilling activities to enhance gas production as sought by the Petrobangla, said a company official. He said the Chevron is now conducting drilling activities in Southern region under Block 7 and has already planned to undertake more drillings in Bibiyana and Moulavibazar gas fields to increase production. Chevron has also been assigned to setting up a compression station at Muchai to support additional gas production from its fields. The Petrobangla has moved to build a 100 km pipeline at a cost of US$250 million to facilitate evacuation of increased gas, said the Petrobangla chief. The Chevron earlier informed the Petrobangla that it would be able to produce more gas from its fields which will help ease Bangladesh's mounting gas demands. It also more than doubled the Bibiyana gas field's proven recoverable gas to 5.50 Tcf from the previous projection of 2.40 Tcf, after Dallas-based petroleum consulting firm DeGolyer & McNaughton, or D&M, made the projection. The D&M also said that the possible reserves could also go up by another 25 per cent. The Bibiyana gas field under block 12 is currently the largest producing gas field with the production of around 700 mmcfd. It 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 the owner after it bought Unocal's global operations in 2006.
The government has asked the US oil giant Chevron to augment daily gas output by at least 500 million cubic feet (mmcfd) by next year to meet the country's mounting energy demand and help boost national economy. "We have asked Chevron to ramp up natural gas production from its gas fields at least by 500 mmcfd by 2012," Petrobangla chairman Dr Hussain Monsur told the FE. He expressed the hope that Chevron would increase the gas output from three of its producing gas fields to reach the targeted production. Officials said Chevron's additional gas production will help ease the country's acute gas crisis. Country's average daily gas production is now hovering around 1980 mmcfd against the demand for over 2,500 mmcfd. The state-owned Petrobangla has suspended new gas connections to industries since July 2009 across the country affecting the industrial growth badly. Gas connections to households remained suspended since July 2010. Gas rationing has been rampant and compressed natural gas (CNG) filling stations are kept closed four hours a day to cope with the gas supply shortfall. The Chevron is now carrying out necessary exploration and drilling activities to enhance gas production as sought by the Petrobangla, said a company official. He said the Chevron is now conducting drilling activities in Southern region under Block 7 and has already planned to undertake more drillings in Bibiyana and Moulavibazar gas fields to increase production. Chevron has also been assigned to setting up a compression station at Muchai to support additional gas production from its fields. The Petrobangla has moved to build a 100 km pipeline at a cost of US$250 million to facilitate evacuation of increased gas, said the Petrobangla chief. The Chevron earlier informed the Petrobangla that it would be able to produce more gas from its fields which will help ease Bangladesh's mounting gas demands. It also more than doubled the Bibiyana gas field's proven recoverable gas to 5.50 Tcf from the previous projection of 2.40 Tcf, after Dallas-based petroleum consulting firm DeGolyer & McNaughton, or D&M, made the projection. The D&M also said that the possible reserves could also go up by another 25 per cent. The Bibiyana gas field under block 12 is currently the largest producing gas field with the production of around 700 mmcfd. It 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 the owner after it bought Unocal's global operations in 2006.