Production at the giant Galkynysh field in Turkmenistan may reach 200 billion cubic meters per year in the future. Irina Luryeva, head of the Laboratory of the Natural Gas Research Institute of the State Concern Turkmengaz, told about the unique hydrocarbon field, which is the world’s largest onshore gas field, in her report at the international conference “Oil and Gas of Turkmenistan 2023”.
As noted in the presentation, seven stages of development of the Galkynysh field are envisaged.
According to forecasts made jointly with the British audit company GaffneyCline, the period of continuous gas extraction for each stage will be 30 years.
“It is planned that during the period of constant gas extraction, the gross gas production in the entire field will reach more than 200 billion cubic meters a year,” said Luryeva.
Currently, the first stage of pilot industrial development is underway, the current stock of production wells includes 51 wells. Three more wells are waiting to be switched to production, and more than 10 wells are in active drilling.
The design flow rate of wells is 1.5 million cubic meters of gas per day, and the potential capabilities of the reservoir allow for a long time to operate wells with a flow rate of 2 million cubic meters per day, the scientist said.
Together with Chuantsin Drilling Engineering Company under CNPC, wells were drilled at Galkynysh with a novel design that differed from the rest of the wells of the first stage. The correct placement of these wells enabled a design flow rate of about 3 million cubic meters of gas per day, which has been maintained stably for 10 months.
Currently, a program for additional exploration of the Galkynysh field is underway. Under the program, one well has been drilled in the first stage of development and at least two exploratory and production wells in other stages. A large amount of seismic work is planned to clarify the field’s strike in the southern, southeastern, northern, and northwestern directions, as well as to drill additional exploratory wells.
According to the representative of the Institute, the Galkynysh deposit is unique and there are still many ways to improve the technologies used at the field, which is of great scientific and practical importance.
These include gas–dynamic studies of dense carbonates and reefs, the technology of drilling high-yield wells up to 5000 meters deep in conditions of abnormally high reservoir pressure, the design of equipment for collecting and preparing gas for transportation, utilization of sulfur and carbon dioxide, and many others.
The reserves of the Galkynysh field, together with the deposits of the adjacent Garakel and Yashlar fields, are estimated at 27.4 trillion cubic meters of gas.
During the first session of the conference, Stephen Wright, Technical Director of GaffneyCline, presented a static modeling prepared by GaffneyCline, which allowed calculating the probabilistic range of initial estimates of Galkynysh gas reserves. The law case is 14.2 trillion cubic meters, base – 18.4 trillion cubic meters, high case – 21.2 trillion cubic meters.
///nCa, 26 October 2023
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