Turkmengaz, CNPC sign contract on Phase IV of Galkynysh field development

ASHGABAT. April 17 (Interfax) - State company Turkmengaz and CNPC Amudarya Petroleum Company Ltd, a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), have signed a contract on the turnkey construction of Phase IV in the development of Turkmenistan's huge Galkynysh gas field, the online newspaper of the Central Asian country's oil and gas industry reported.

The signing ceremony took place in Ashgabat on Thursday during the International Scientific and Practical Conference, which was dedicated to the 20th anniversary of cooperation between Turkmenistan and China in the gas sector.

The implementation of the contract will help to significantly boost natural gas production in Turkmenistan and increase the country's gas exports, the paper said.

It was reported earlier that, under the contract, CNPC Amudarya Petroleum will handle the turnkey design and construction of facilities to treat 10 billion cubic meters of commercial gas per year and production wells sufficient for processing this amount of gas.

Turkmengaz is the main operator in the development of the Galkynysh field, which holds more than 27 trillion cubic meters of natural gas. The field is being developed in stages with the involvement of major international oil and gas companies and service contractors. CNPC won a tender to develop the fourth phase of the project.

The implementation of Phase IV, which will be financed by Turkmenistan, is scheduled to begin in 2026.

Galkynysh is currently producing gas under the first phase of its commercial development, which was launched in September 2013. It supplies gas to the domestic market and to China.

The implementation of Phase IV with capacity of 10 bcm per year with CNPC will make it possible to increase gas exports to China to 65 bcm per year.

There are a total of seven phases planned for the development of Galkynysh and upon their completion the field's gas production will reach 200 bcm per year.