Arab News

RIYADH: Saudi Arabian Oil Co. has discovered an additional 15 trillion standard cubic feet of gas in the Kingdom’s Jafurah Field.

According to a press statement from the Ministry of Energy, the discovery also includes 2 billion barrels of condensate.

With the latest discovery, the quantity of resources in the field has become 229 trillion standard cubic feet of gas and 75 billion barrels of condensate, the ministry added in the press statement, citing the Kingdom’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman.

This discovery made by the energy giant, also known as Saudi Aramco, was a result of applying the highest international standards in estimating and developing hydrocarbon resources to ensure their proper exploitation, the statement added. 

In November 2023, the Ministry of Energy announced that Saudi Aramco had discovered two new gas fields in the Eastern Province and the Empty Quarter respectively.

In a press statement, the ministry said the first discovery occurred at the Hanifa reservoir in the Al-Hiran-1 well. 

It reported that the field was discovered after gas flowed at a rate of 30 million scf per day from the said reservoir, along with 1,600 barrels of condensate. 

The second discovery was made at the Al-Mahakek-2 well, where the natural resource flowed at 0.85 million scf per day.

The ministry added that gas was also discovered in five other reservoirs in previously discovered fields, including the Jalla reservoir in the Assekra field, where gas flowed at a rate of 46 million scf per day. 

In November, Saudi Aramco also began the production of unconventional tight gas from its South Ghawar operational area, two months ahead of its schedule.

Unconventional tight gas, also known as shale gas, is typically found in reserves where hydrocarbons are tightly trapped within rock layers. 

Extracting this resource demands specialized techniques like horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing.

The commissioned facilities at South Ghawar currently have a processing capacity of 300 million scf per day for raw gas and 38,000 barrels per day for condensate.

Earlier in February, speaking at the International Petroleum Technology Conference in Dhahran, Amin H. Nasser, CEO of Saudi Aramco, said that the company is eyeing continuity in the production of all types of energy, including oil and gas, along with renewables. 

He also added that Aramco has the full capability to grow in any sector to create profitable companies.