Saudi Arabia to Start Shale Exploration

Saudi Arabia will soon begin exploring its shale gas resources.

According to a report by Middle East Confidential, Saudi Aramco is engaged in talks for the acquisition of 40 extra rigs to supplement its plans for shale gas operations.

The government has not made any official announcement regarding the exploitation of shale gas in the country although studies have proved that it has enough of it to allow heavy investments, the report said.

The reason for focus on shale resources is that the Kingdom wants to enhance its gas output. Cost of production has also been falling and it’s estimated to be around $8-$9 a million BTUs to extract and process the resource in Saudi Arabia, Middle East Confidential reported.