Gas found in new Bhola well, to produce 20mmcf a day

Fresh reserve of gas with a daily extraction capacity of 20-22 million cubic feet (mmcf) has been found in a new well named Ilisha-1 in Bhola.

The Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Limited (Bapex), has successfully extracted gas experimentally from the well, bringing the total number of active wells in the district to nine.

Confirming the development, Bapex Managing Director Mohammad Ali told The Business Standard that they have started Drill Stem Test (DST) at a zone of the well on Friday and will continue for the next 72 hours.

Later, they will conduct the test in two zones within the next 15 days. Bapex started drilling the well in March.

A Bapex official said on condition of anonymity that a huge amount of gas has been found in eight wells in Bhola so far. The newly discovered gas well is estimated to have 180 to 200 billion cubic feet of gas reserves.

The government has taken several measures to enhance the domestic gas supply and overcome the energy crisis in the country. As part of this effort, Bapex initiated the drilling of Ilisha-1 well in Bhola.

On 8 March, Ilisha-1 excavation started in the Maler Hat area of Ilisha union in Bhola Sadar upazila and the drilling was completed successfully on 24 April through the Drill Stem Test in three levels at a depth of 3,475 metres.

According to sources, Russia's Gazprom is conducting drilling operations at the well as per the design and instruction of Bapex. It is expected that the well will be suitable for extracting gas from 15 May.

After the discovery of the Shahbazpur gas field in Borhanuddin, Bhola in 1993-94, eight wells were subsequently drilled in Bhola Sadar and Borhanuddin upazila. As of now, the total gas reserve in the district stands at 1.7 TCF.