Badr El-Din Petroleum Company (BAPETCO) achieved the highest rates of oil and gas production in 15 years, where production reached 514m cubic feet last week, and 51,000 barrels of crude oil daily.
Emad Hamdy, chairman of BAPETCO, told Daily News Egypt that the company increased the production of natural gas to nearly 514m cubic feet per day, compared to 460m cubic feet during fiscal year (FY) 2014/2015, in concession areas affiliated to the Dutch company Shell.
He added that crude oil production increased to 51,000 barrels per day compared to 43,000 barrels during FY 2014/2015.
Hamdy noted that BAPETCO plans to keep its production rates of gas and oil by drilling development wells in order to compensate for the natural decline rates in the productivity of fields.
He pointed out that Shell has about $415m worth of investments during FY 2015/2016 in its concession areas in Egypt, to implement the processes of developing research and exploration fields, to increase the rates of oil and natural gas production.
Hamdy explained that investments in FY 2015/2016 include three main items; the first is $268m for the projects of field developments, $97m for operation and business expenses, and $50m for wells exploration and other expenses.
He said a new exploratory well in the Abyad field in the Western Desert has been producing nearly 38m cubic feet of gas and 1,000 barrels of condensates per day after the drilling operation ended.
Hamdy added that the company succeeded in producing daily amounts of 26m cubic feet of gas and 600 barrels of condensates from another well in the Abyad field.
He noted that it is planned that the new development well, Sitra, which exists in Badr-3 fields, would produce a daily amount of gas that reaches 20m cubic feet, in addition to 2,600 barrels of crude oil. Drilling the well is completed, and a line of 15 km is being constructed to easily connect the well to production facilities in the area.
He explained that production rates of crude oil in the area of Neyag – 1 in the Western Desert reached 15,000 barrels per day, and new wells are being drilled in the same area similarly to others that were drilled previously and produced 6,000 barrels per day. Moreover, a study to increase the storage capacity in the area is being taken into consideration.
BAPETCO seeks to increase production rates of natural gas and crude oil in order to compensate for the natural decline of old tanks through new technology, like water injection.
