Saudi Arabia Advances Carbon Capture Project

7 Feb 2014 Issue: 57 / 6

Saudi Aramco is moving forward with an enhanced oil recovery project using CO2 injection. It also plans to shut down the Shaybah light oil field imminently to tie in new production facilities that will raise output by 250,000 b/d. This will balance its lighter and heavier crude streams but leave capacity unchanged.

Whilst Saudi Aramco’s plans are surley ambitious, some analysts question whether the state-giant is on the right track.The CO2 project is part of plans to boost its oil recovery rates in the future, implement stricter environmental standards in its operations and free up more natural gas.

Aramco has been conducting an enhanced oil recovery project using CO2 at ‘Uthmaniyah, a depleted reservoir that forms part of the giant Ghawar oil field, the world’s largest conventional field that was discovered 60 years ago and has been producing at a steady 5mn b/d of light crude for decades. Ghawar accounts for more than half of Saudi Arabia’s total current 9.8mn b/d crude production (see p14). The company plans to inject 40mn cfd of CO2 captured at the Hawiyah gas plant into the Jurassic carbonate limestone reservoir at ‘Uthmaniyah over a three-year period to determine how much incremental oil can be recovered. (CONTINUED - 1531 WORDS)