Iraq Captures More Gas from Flaring
Basrah Gas Company (BGC), dedicated to curbing flared gas in the major Rumaila, West Qurna 1 and Zubair oil fields in southern Iraq, said that by capturing instead of flaring associated natural gas production in 2018 it will increase output by 17% year-on-year, to 1,050mn f3 (10.85bn m3/yr), Iraq’s oil ministry announced.
The volume equals the country’s total sales gas production in 2017.
The ministry said that the $17bn BGC joint venture, established in 2013, would double this volume in future, without mentioning any date, but Anglo-Dutch major Shell, which holds a 44% interest in the joint venture, said earlier this year that the volume would reach 14.5bn m3/y by 2020.
Iraq has announced that it plans to curb total flaring, estimated at 17.85bn m3 last year, by 2021.
Other shareholders in the 25-year project are local state-owned South Gas Company with 51% and Japan’s Mitsubishi with a 5% interest.
Iraq said recently it could get a 45-day US sanctions waiver on Iranian gas imports, but says more time is needed to replace the 28mn m3/day currently being imported from Iran. Iran is obliged to send 70% of the contracted volume to Baghdad and Basra during the hot seasons and the rest in autumn and winter.
Iran started flowing 7mn m3/day of gas to Baghdad in June 2017 and gradually doubled that until the end of year. Exports to Basra haven’t started yet, awaiting a resolution of payment methods.
Last week’s gas import disruption - which is continuing - caused massive power outages in Baghdad and other cities.