Turkmenistan puts new Tajibay gas field on stream
ASHGABAT. Dec 23 (Interfax) - The Tajibay gas field has gone commercially on stream in the Lebap province of eastern Turkmenistan, the Turkmenistan Golden Age online newspaper reports.
The first well will produce more than 450,000 cubic meters of gas per day. Another three wells are being drilled.
The new field is not far from the big Malay field, which went into production more than 20 years ago.
The State Statistics Committee has said Turkmenistan produced more than 70 billion cubic meters of gas per year in 2017-2018, exporting 38 bcm per year, but experts rate the country's gas potential much more highly.
Turkmenistan could in time be exporting 150-160 bcm of gas per year. It will be able to export at least 60-70 bcm of gas to China each year when all four strands of the pipeline to China are running at full projected capacity. Supplies of up to 5 bcm to Russia resumed in 2019 but this figures could soar in time. Two pipelines to Iran have the capacity to supply another 20 bcm. The Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India pipeline will increase export potential by another 33 bcm and the Trans-Caspian pipeline, if the project is implemented, will be able to supply up to 30 bcm to the European Union.