Petrobangla has started running at the speed of a bullet after breaking through decades of stagnation. Bangladesh has already started getting its benefits.
Energy experts have been blaming the stagnation of exploration for the gas crisis in the country. Many were critical of Petrobangla due to its laxity. But those days are now beginning to change. The previous chairman of Petrobangla, Nazmul Ahsan (current secretary of water resources ministry) tried to break the deadlock and bring it into line. And the current chairman Janendra Nath Sarkar is going to give bullet speed to Petrobangla which is on the line. On the one hand, as momentum has increased, new dimensions have also been added to oil-gas exploration.
Until now, Bangladesh was stuck in a certain limit in oil and gas exploration. To put it more briefly, Bangladesh was trapped between Surma Basin, ie, from Sylhet to Moulvibazar, Habiganj, Brahmanbaria, Cumilla, Feni, Noakhali and Bhola. Some exploration activities have been launched in other areas, but the amount can be said to be negligible. Petrobangla is going to bring radical changes there too.
Chairman Janendra Nath Sarkar told Barta24.com that two more have been added to the 46 well projects. A 48-well drilling project is progressing rapidly, which will be completed by 2025. Bangladesh has already started getting the benefits of that program. Through 10 wells, the daily extraction capacity of 13 crore cubic feet of gas has increased in Bangladesh. Production was expected to rise to 100 crore cubic feet per day. There we are going to get 3 crore cubic feet of gas more than the target.
He said, besides the 48 well drilling project, we have taken up the plan to dig 100 more wells by 2026-28. For this, more than three hundred potential areas have been identified; from which 100 wells will be finalized after verification. A core committee is working for this. Experts' opinion on this matter will be taken soon.
Janendra Nath Sarkar said, the important thing for drilling wells is to identify potential places. And 2D and 3D seismic survey is necessary to identify the place. We have started working there as well. Hitherto exploration activities were limited to certain areas. Breaking that tradition, the entire geographical area of Bangladesh is being brought under the scope of search. We are sitting with the map of Bangladesh. Seismic survey has been done in some areas, green has been marked there and seismic survey will be done in those areas which have not been worked before. After this, initiative will be taken to dig wells in potential areas.
The Chairman of Petrobangla said that he is giving the highest priority to the domestic company Bapex in terms of work. First of all ensuring that their rigs are optimally utilized, so that their rigs never sit idle. Being consistently roistered. Then the remaining wells will be drilled by foreign companies. Time is being fixed in their case. They will sit with it, there is no opportunity to do that.
He said, it has been decided to break the existing system from the strata aspect as well. In Bangladesh, gas is generally extracted by drilling wells from 2600 meters to 4000 meters. However, some wells including Fenchuganj-2 have been drilled up to 4900 meters. We never worked below that level. I have started the work of doing more deep drilling in 2 wells including Mobarakpur in Pabna. We are also expecting good results from deep drilling.
Below the gas layer is solid rock. A 3D seismic (3D) survey by BAPEX suggests that there may be gas layers beneath the solid rock. According to that 3D, Srikail can contain 926 BCF (billion cubic feet) and Titas 1 thousand 583 BCF of gas. In all, reserves may amount to as much as two and a half TCF (trillion cubic feet). However, what lies below the solid rock layer, has not been seen by drilling wells. And until the well is dug, nothing can be said for sure. That is why Bangladesh is going to dig wells.
Petrobangla is also preparing to start work in neglected hilly areas. Being slightly more complex than the plain, preparing for international tenders like the ocean. For this, the work of making a PSC on the model of Sagar is going on, said the chairman of Petrobangla.
He also said that work is going on with the deep sea of great potential. Many foreign companies are showing interest as a result of the new PSC. International tenders will be called in March. Those who will be the first in the competition will get the job. We have made all preparations to provide uninterrupted gas supply from 2026 onwards.
The people concerned said that there is a possibility of obtaining a lot of gas in Bangladesh. From 1986 to 2001, 9 internationally renowned companies worked on the prospecting of oil and gas resources in Bangladesh. Some organizations conducted search operations across the country and some in specific areas. In 2001, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and Petrobangla, Hydrocarbon Unit and Norwegian Petroleum Directorate conducted the survey. The USGS-Petrobangla report indicated the possibility of getting gas at a minimum of 8.4, an average of 32.1 and a maximum of 65.7 TCF (trillion cubic feet). On the other hand, the Hydrocarbon Unit and the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate have indicated a minimum of 19, an average of 42 and a maximum of 64 TCF of gas.
A total of 29 gas fields have been discovered in Bangladesh. Daily (February 13, 2024) 2041 decimal 7 gas is being extracted through 111 wells in 20 gas fields. At one time up to 2800 million gas was extracted. Production has decreased in many wells due to dwindling reserves. 5 gas fields (Rupganj, Kamta, Feni, Chatak and Sangu) have been declared abandoned. 3 gas fields (Qutubdia, Bhola and Jokiganj) are closed due to lack of gas transmission system.
Although the success rate of Bangladesh is high, many people now think that it is a whale. However, Petrobangla has broken that trend and returned to speed. If continuity is maintained, experts see hope in increasing gas reserves and production. The first well was dug in the territory of Bangladesh in 1911. In the 112 years exploratory wells have been drilled, approximately 99. Petrobangla wants to dig 70 exploration wells in 3 years.