The government of Bahrain announced discovery of a new tight oil and deep gas resource in the Khaleej Al Bahrain Basin, located off the west coast of the Kingdom. This represents the largest discovery of oil in the country since 1932, when extraction started on Bahrain’s first oil well within the Bahrain Oil Field.
According to Bahrain news agency, the new resource is expected to contain highly significant quantities of tight oil and deep gas, understood to dwarf Bahrain’s current reserves.
Bahrain’s Minister of Oil, Shaikh Mohamed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, confirmed the find is at substantial levels, capable of supporting the long-term extraction of tight oil and deep gas.
Bahrain’s National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA) is currently working alongside private sector partners, aimed at detailing the ultimate quantity and market value of the find through modelling and analytical studies. The discovery is expected to support extensive, long-term downstream activities.
This follows a recent uplift in oil and gas exploration projects undertaken in response to a directive from His Majesty King Hamad to the Higher Committee for Natural Resources and Economic Security to increase exploration activities, according to BNA. Last year, the Committee accelerated initiatives and searching at west Bahrain, which resulted in the discovery of the resource and oil being struck in late 2017.
The Ministry of Oil will host a press conference on Wednesday in Bahrain to provide additional details on the discovery, including initial findings of size and extraction viability.
Meanwhile, construction of a 800 million cubic feet terminal for LNG imports is underway in Bahrain, to cover the country’s rising needs for power generation.
