Aramco has discovered two natural gas fields in the Empty Quarter, the Al-Hiran and Al-Mahakik fields
The discovery was announced by Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Energy, HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz.
The discovery of Al-Hiran natural gas field was confirmed after gas flowed from Hanifa reservoir in the Al-Hiran – 1 well, at a rate of 30mn standard cubic feet (MMSCF), and 1,600 Barrel of Condensates daily (BCPD), and from the Al-'Arab – C reservoir in the same field at a rate of 3.1 MMSCFD.
The discovery of Al-Mahakik natural gas field was confirmed after gas flowed from the Al-Mahakik – 2 well, at a rate of 0.85 MMSCFD.
Natural gas was also discovered in five reservoirs in previously discovered fields. It was discovered in the Jallah reservoir in the 'Usaikerak field in the Empty Quarter, after gas flowed at a rate of 46 MMSCFD, in addition to discovering an additional natural gas reservoir in Shadoun field, west of Haradh, after gas flowed from 'Unayzah – A reservoir, at a rate of 15.5 MMSCFD, with around 460 BCPD.
Natural gas was also discovered in 'Unayzah B/C reservoirs in Mazalij field, southwest of Dhahran, where gas flowed at a rate of 14 MMSCFD, with about 4,150 BCPD, and in Al-Sarah reservoir in Al-Wadhihi field and Al-Qusaibah reservoir in Awtad field, southwest of Hofuf city, where natural gas flowed at a rate of 11.7 MMSCFD and 5.1 MMSCFD, respectively, with about 57 BCPD.
The new discoveries will bolster Aramco’s strategy to increase gas production by more than half over 2021 levels, through 2030, subject to domestic demand. Aramco plans to further expand its gas business, including the development of its unconventional gas resources, increasing production and investing in additional infrastructure to meet the large and growing domestic demand for lower-cost energy. Domestic gas demand growth is driven by power generation, water desalination, petrochemical production, and other industrial consumption in the Kingdom.
Earlier in November, Saudi Aramco began the production of unconventional tight gas from its South Ghawar operational area, two months ahead of schedule.
