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Bangladesh, Jan. 24 -- Russian oil and gas giant Gazprom will start drilling the country's onshore gas wells in February, a senior Petrobangla official said.
Top Gazprom officials will be visiting Dhaka next week, while inaugurating its first-ever drilling works in Bangladesh, Petrobangla Chairman Dr Hussain Monsur told the FE.
The Russian firm is now carrying out civil works for drilling onshore gas wells in the country's state-run gas-fields.
Gazprom has already shipped two modern drilling rigs for Bangladesh to initiate drilling wells. Initially, the company will drill two wells in Titas and Srikail gas-fields with the rigs, he added.
Gazprom will be the first foreign company in Bangladesh to drill onshore wells on a contract basis to increase the country's overall gas output.
Other international oil companies (IOCs), active in Bangladesh, operate through signing production-sharing contracts (PSCs) or in joint ventures with the Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Ltd (Bapex).
Titas gas-field, owned by the Bangladesh Gas Fields Company Ltd (BGFCL), is the country's second largest gas producing field with its average output of around 452 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) from 15 gas wells.
However, gas production from the Srikail field has not started yet.
The Russian company inked deals with Petrobangla subsidiaries - BGFCL, Sylhet Gas Fields Ltd (SGFL) and Bapex - on April 26, 2012 to drill 10 development wells across six gas-fields at a total cost of US$ 193.5 million.
It will drill four development wells in BGFCL's Titas gas-field and one well in SGFL's Rashidpur gas-field.
The Petrobangla chairman expressed the hope that Gazprom would be able to drill all the 10 wells by 2013, and natural gas output from these wells would be around 200 mmcfd.
Gazprom's contracts cover construction of drilling pad, camp warehouse and site preparation, rig shifting and commissioning, procurement of drilling materials, engagement of third party services, drilling, testing and commissioning and insurance.
Petrobangla approached Gazprom to develop the wells after Polish oil and gas explorer Poszukiwania Nastyi Gazu Krakow backed out despite being selected in a competitive tender two years ago.
The country subsequently passed a law that bypasses the tender process, and prevents deals inked under the new law from being challenged in courts.
Bangladesh's natural gas output currently hovers around 2,210 mmcfd against the demand for over 2,700-3,000 mmcfd.
The shortage in gas supply has compelled Petrobangla to go for rationing in supply to industries, power plants and compressed natural gas (CNG) filling stations, and to suspend officially new gas connections to households since July 2010. Published by HT Syndication with permission from The Financial Express. For any query with respect to this article or any other content requirement, please contact Editor at htsyndication@hindustantimes.com
Copyright 2013 The Financial Express. All Rights Reserved.
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