Gas production from an abandoned well at Bakhrabad gas field resumed on Wednesday after a long four-year gap.
Bangladesh Gas Fields Company Ltd (BGFCL) has successfully produced about 15 mmcfd (million cubic feet per day) natural gas from the well no 1, said officials concerned.
The well of the Bakhrabad Gas Field has now been contributing 15 million cubic feet gas every day to the national grid and the gas pressure in the wellhead has about 1950 PSI (pound-force per square inch).
“We have successfully produced the gas after drilling the workover well at Bakhrabad-1 between 1950 and 1970 meters deep from surface in ‘D’ upper sand. We hope, if everything goes well, the production could increase by another 10 mmcfd,” said Engineer Md Ashraful Islam, project director of the work-over well.
He said the well no.1 is one of the oldest wells in the country which was first drilled in 1968 and started producing 33 mmcfd gas in 1981.
But the production came to a halt in May 2015 for a fall in pressure and also due to the presence of excessive water.
As per the suggestion of a technical committee of Petrobangla, Bangladesh Gas Field Limited, a subsidiary of Petrobangla, took a decision to conduct workover at the well under the project titled “Workover at 7 wells in Titas, Habiganj, Narsingdi, and Bakhrabad gas fields.
Officials said they had conducted the workover from February 20 to May 15 this year and finally the success came on Wednesday.
“As a new zone of gas was found at a level of 2000-2006 meter depth during the work-over process, there is a possibility increase in gas production by another 10 mmcfd from the well in future,” said Ashraful.
Earlier in 1968, Pakistan Shell Oil Ltd discovered the Bakharabad gas field with drilling between 1968 and 2838 meters deep from the surface. The company then discovered 10 major and minor gas structures including A, B, C, D (Upper and Lower), F, G, J, K and L between 1789 and 2500 meters deep from surface.
Now, the BGFCL has produces 43mmcfd of natural gas from Bakhrabad Gas Field.
The government has already undertaken a project for drilling seven work-over wells in Titas, Bahiganj, Narsingdi and Bakhrabad at a cost of Tk 354.54 crore.
Of the project, the BGFCL drilled Habiganj well in August 30, 2018, said project director Md Ashraful Islam. He added the BGFCL is working to drill rest of five wells under the project.
