The first well on the shelf will be no earlier than in 5 years - Mavriky Kalugin "Naftogaz"

JSC "Naftogaz of Ukraine" can start drilling wells on the Black Sea shelf no earlier than in five years. And this is still an optimistic scenario. This was said by Naftogaz board member  Mavriky Kalugin on October 20 at the Ukrainian Gas Investment Congress in Kyiv.

"We can drill the first well on the shelf no sooner than in five years. To drill, we need to attract a company that knows how to drill at depth," said the top manager, noting that five years is still an optimistic scenario. Only one well will cost $4-6 billion. We will not be able to do it alone. We need partners."

According to him, it will take six months to drill one well in the sea, not taking into account the construction of all the necessary infrastructure. It is longer than on land, says  Mavriky Kalugin. However, gas production at the "Ukrgazvydobuvannya" deposits will be increased no earlier than three to five years.

In general, according to Naftogaz's calculations, the state company will have to invest 20 billion dollars in production over the next 10 years.

It will be recalled that on November 25, 2020, the Cabinet of Ministers granted OJSC "Naftogaz of Ukraine" a permit for the development of oil and gas fields on the Ukrainian shelf of the Black Sea for 30 years without an auction. In October, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that the Cabinet of Ministers expects a 10% increase in gas production in Ukraine at the end of 2021 and 2022.

In March, the former executive director of Naftogaz, Otto Vaterlander, noted that the state-owned company could start drilling wells in the Black Sea in late 2022 - early 2023. For this, "Naftogaz" and "Ukrgazvydobuvannya" signed a memorandum of understanding with the Israeli company Naphtha Petroleum and the Romanian company OMV Petrom.

Yesterday, during the forum, "Naftogaz" signed two more memorandums related to production on the Black Sea shelf. Potential cooperation with Dragon Oil is considered around the study and development of areas of the Black Sea. The company has modern field development technologies, which ensure an increase in production with a simultaneous decrease in production costs. In particular, he practices drilling inclined wells with a significant zenith angle, completing wells in different horizons, etc.

Cooperation with SOCAR AQS, an integrated company for the management of drilling and construction of wells, can technologically strengthen the development of Black Sea areas. After all, the company has extensive experience in drilling on the shelf of the Caspian Sea and has its own drilling fleet for work at sea. SOCAR AQS also has the expertise and technical capabilities to drill complex areas on dry land. This can be useful in the case of scaling up projects for the development of gas deposits of dense rocks, which are in the Naftogaz portfolio.