Two more wells planned at Titas: Tk 592 crore project could add 30 million cubic feet of gas a day

The government wants to drill two more wells at Titas in Brahmanbaria, the country's largest gas field. The two appraisal and development wells, named Titas-32 and Titas-33, are estimated to cost Tk 592 crore. Once in operation, they are expected to add about 30 million cubic feet of gas a day to the national grid.

The project will be placed for approval at the meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on Wednesday (November 4).

Planning Commission sources said a total of 14 development projects, costing about Tk 9,000 crore in all, will be placed at Wednesday's meeting. Prime Minister and ECNEC chairperson Tarique Rahman will preside over the meeting at the Cabinet Room of the Secretariat. The meeting was scheduled for October 25 but was postponed because of the Prime Minister's visit to Japan.

Bangladesh Gas Fields Company Limited (BGFCL), under Petrobangla, will implement the Titas project. Of the total cost, the government will provide Tk 414.40 crore, while the remaining Tk 177.60 crore will come from BGFCL's own funds. The work is scheduled for completion between October this year and September 2029.

Under the project, the two wells will be drilled through a foreign contractor, alongside the appointment of local and foreign consultants and the laying of gas-gathering pipelines. The project was initially proposed at Tk 632 crore. A Project Evaluation Committee (PEC) meeting on June 18 recommended bringing the cost down to a reasonable level, after which Tk 40 crore was cut.

According to the project proposal, the two wells could yield about 100.74 billion cubic feet of gas over 10 years, along with 60,444 barrels of condensate. At BGFCL's current prices, the gas and condensate are worth about Tk 339 crore. At consumer-level prices, however, the gas alone is worth about Tk 6,524 crore — more than 11 times the project cost.

A three-dimensional seismic survey was carried out at the Titas field between 2010 and 2012. BGP Incorporated, a subsidiary of China's state-owned CNPC, analysed the survey data and recommended drilling 16 new wells and 7 deep wells at the Titas and Bakhrabad fields. Titas-32 and Titas-33 were prioritised from that recommendation. The two wells are part of the government's plan to drill 150 wells onshore to raise gas production in the country.

Titas in Brahmanbaria is the country's first and largest gas field. Pakistan Shell Oil Company discovered it in 1962, and commercial production began in 1968. The field's initial proven reserve was 7.34 trillion cubic feet (TCF), of which about 5.6 TCF has already been extracted.

Of the 28 wells drilled at Titas so far, 23 are now producing about 330 million cubic feet of gas a day. Roughly one-fifth of the total output of the country's domestic gas fields comes from this single field. On that basis, the two new wells would raise Titas's production by about 9 percent.

Drilling of new wells at Titas is already under way. On September 19, the Titas-28 well began supplying 12.5 million cubic feet of gas a day to the national grid, and drilling is in progress at wells Titas-29, 30 and 31.

Besides the Titas project, Wednesday's ECNEC meeting will also consider a project to buy specialised and operational vehicles for Bangladesh Police. Urban development and infrastructure projects include 'Innovation Climate Smart Urban Development', the establishment of Netrokona University, and a safe water supply and sanitation project for the Barendra region. A project to develop damaged sections of main roads, drains and footpaths of Dhaka South City Corporation is also on the list.

Also listed are the establishment of nuclear medicine centres at five medical colleges, the restoration and re-excavation of canals of Barisal City Corporation (first phase), and local economic development in selected municipalities. Construction of officers' housing on Moinul Road in Dhaka Cantonment, multi-storey buildings for government employees at Gabtala Colony in Jigatala, 'Metro Dhaka: Water Supply and Sanitation', and bridge and culvert construction up to 15 metres on rural roads will also be placed at the meeting. The list initially had 15 projects; one was later dropped.

Planning Secretary SM Shakil Akhtar said, 'One project was dropped as the number was high. Preparations to place the projects that are very important have been finalised.' He said four more projects costing less than Tk 50 crore each will be placed at the meeting for notification, and Finance and Planning Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury has already approved them. They are the modernisation of cardiac care at Dinajpur Zia Heart Foundation Hospital, ensuring safe internet use for children, adolescents and secondary students, road safety in the Dhaka North City Corporation area, and the expansion of the Dhaka Central Drug Addiction Treatment Centre.