Saudi Aramco said it has started producing natural gas from tight sands reservoirs in the South Ghawar field, as it looks to ramp up unconventional gas flows to meet domestic demand in Saudi Arabia. The move is part of Aramco’s efforts to boost gas production by more than half from 2021 levels through 2030.
Aramco said the facilities at the South Ghawar operation have the capacity to process 300mcfd of raw gas and 38,000 barrels per day of condensate.
The Saudi state energy company is planning to more than double South Ghawar’s processing capacity to 700mcfd in the near future to meet surging gas demand in the country.
Aramco’s tight sand gas production from South Ghawar marks its second such production from an unconventional asset, followed by gas production at the North Arabia field in 2018.
Currently, the company is moving ahead with development of the Jafurah unconventional gas field, reputed to be the Middle East’s largest liquid-rich shale gas play.