Dragon Oil Eyes Opportunities to Monetise Gas in Turkmenistan

Dubai-headquartered Dragon Oil opens the doors to potential natural-gas buyers in Turkmenistan and in Central Asia. 

According to its agreement with the Turkmen government, Dragon can export the gas produced in the Cheleken Contract Area. At the moment, this could be a viable solution for the company despite some hurdles. 

“We continue to discuss gas opportunities with the Turkmenistan government. The demand for gas is weak overall; hence, discussions are taking time. Under the Production Sharing Agreement we can speak to any third parties to evaluate demand for gas,” confirmed a company spokesperson in an email.

Dragon has 1.5 million tcf of gas reserves and 1.4 tcf of gas resources in the Cheleken Contract Area. The company signed a production licence for the exploration and development of hydrocarbons in 2000, which expires in 12 years.

The company, listed on the London Stock Exchange and on the Irish Stock Exchange, pumps out gas in Turkmenistan, which already produces its own fuel. Dragon can burn the gas or feed it into a state-owned pipeline for free. 

The Group states on the website that one of its main strategic objectives is to ‘pursue opportunities in Turkmenistan to monetise the gas reserves and resources.’