Saudi Arabia Announces Four Oil, Gas Finds
Saudi Arabia has made four new oil and gas discoveries, including unconventional resources, its energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said in a statement published by the official Saudi Press Agency on December 27.
National oil company Saudi Aramco is working to determine the size of the discoveries, the minister said. Unconventional gas was found at the Al-Sarrah reservoir in the Al-Minahhaz well southwest of the giant Ghawar oilfield, and at the Al-Sahbaa well south of Ghawar, he said. The Al-Minahhaz well flowed at a rate of 18mn ft3/day of gas and 98 barrels/d of condensate, while the Al-Sahbaa well pumped out 32mn ft3/day of gas.
The minister also that unconventional oil had been encountered at the Al-Reesh field northwest of Dhahran and at the Al-Ajramiyah field northwest of Rafhaa city. The Al-Reesh No. 2 well is producing at a rate of 4,452 b/d of Arab Extra Light crude and 3.2mn ft3/d of gas. Aramco has also sunk a third and a fourth well at Al-Reesh, which are flowing 2,745 b/d of Arab Extra Light and 3mn ft3/d of gas, and 3,654 b/d of Arab Extra Light and 1.6mn ft3/d of gas respectively.
A new well at Al-Ajramiyah is producing 3,850 b/d of oil.
Saudi Arabia aims to expand its oil production capacity from the current 12mn b/d to 13mn b/d, although this plan will be affected by Aramco's steep cuts to capital expenditure this year and next in response to the coronavirus crisis. The country also wants to expand the use of gas in power generation, freeing up more oil for shipment overseas.