Developments in Bahrain’s energy future

WHILE BAHRAIN IS a much smaller hydrocarbons producer than its neighbours, oil and gas continues to be a mainstay of the economy. Although progress on the major Khaleej Al Bahrain offshore oilfield discovery, estimated to hold 80 bn bbl of shale oil and 20 trillion cubic feet of gas, has been limited due to the technical challenges, other discoveries may prove easier to exploit.

In recent developments, Bahrain has made two new natural gas discoveries in the unconventional Al-Jawf and Al-Joubah onshore reservoirs. The discovery was made by The Oil and Gas Holding Company (nogaholding).

Commenting on the discoveries, Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, chairman at nogaholding, stated that this has provided the necessary information to continue the progression of evaluating wells to reap the benefits of natural gas resources. "This information available to us paves the way for the future development and production of the natural gas resource in the interest of the Kingdom of Bahrain," he said.

Further drilling operations are planned to go ahead this year and 2024 in which the AlTaweel and Al-Sara layers will be assessed. This will be on top of the horizontal drilling experience in the Al-Juba well intended to boost productivity.

at reinforcing the partnership with regards to a sustainable development framework, supplementing oil and gas with decarbonisation incentives such as renewables, particularly the development of a carbon capture usage and storage (CCUS) project.

Deliberations also covered possible joint cooperation initiatives between Eni and nogaholding, comprising solutions for upstream production optimisation in deep gas structures, bio-feed refinery and bio-feed upstream.

Augmenting the daily refining production capacity further, is the Bapco Modernisation project, taking the capacity from 267,000 barrels to 380,000 per day. The programme, which is set to be completed in 2024, will improve energy efficiency while also increasing quantity and quality, making the Bahrain refinery a stand out in compliance among environmental standards around the world.

380,000 barrels per day "

The Minister mentioned that the GCC region is committed to preserving its leadership and progressive position in the energy market by addressing the energy needs for all partners from different countries without disruption. This would be in conjunction with high-value products that meet the international low-carbon and environmentally friendly standards.

This is in line with a key transitional period for the kingdom of Bahrain which, in common with its neighbours, is pursuing its net zero objectives. Speaking at the International Energy Week Panel which took place on 28 February 2023, Mark Thomas, group CEO at nogaholding, commented, “We’re gearing up for an energy future which looks much different to where we are now. One that is more responsible, decarbonised, and energy efficient.”

Prior to this, the Prime Minister of Bahrain met with Eni CEO, Claudio Descalzi to discuss the progress of Eni’s activities within the country regarding gas production and carbon capture, circular economy, and energy transition, Eni having had a longstanding involvement in the market. The discussion spotlighted the ongoing collaboration targeted

Speaking at the second Gulf Downstream Association (GDA) International Downstream Conference and Exhibition in February, the Prime Minister Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa said, "Bapco Refinery Modernisation Project, which is the continuation of many development projects in this vital sector, is considered one of the largest strategic projects aiming at increasing the daily refining production capacity from 267,000 barrels to

He went on to explain, “The Prime Minister of Bahrain made a commitment that Bahrain would achieve net zero by 2060 and reduce its emissions by 30% by 2035. This commitment underpins everything we do at nogaholding; it is also one of the three main mandates that we have. Those are: securing energy supply for the kingdom, maximising the returns of Bahrain’s natural resources, and also moving towards a more sustainable energy future.” n