The reservoir was discovered in the Khalij Al-Bahrain basin, off the west coast. The first drilling planned for August. The basin would also contain between 280 and 560 billion cubic meters of natural gas. The small Arab kingdom, once marginal in production, can now become one of the main players in the market.
Manama (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Bahrain authorities yesterday announced the discovery of new oil reserves, for a total volume of about 80 billion barrels. The discovery allows the Arab kingdom, once among the marginal actors in the region, to conquer a key role in the global production of crude oil and avocate important slices of the market.
According to Oil and Gas Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al-Khalifa, the total volume of extractable shale oil still needs to be quantified. However, it is far superior to the only field known to date in the country and which contains reserves equal to hundreds of millions of barrels.
The maxi offshore deposit is located in the Khalij Al-Bahrain basin, located in shallow waters off the west coast of the country and about two thousand square kilometers wide. It is located near an already functioning oil field with facilities ready to be connected to the new discovery. This is the largest oil discovery in the Kingdom since 1932. Currently, operations are under way to assess the amount of shale oil. The first drilling is scheduled for the month of August.
Today, the small Gulf State produces 50 thousand barrels of crude oil a day. Manama also has another 150 thousand barrels a day coming from the Abu Saafa offshore field, which it shares with neighboring Saudi Arabia. In addition to shale oil, the basin would also contain between 280 and 560 billion cubic meters of natural gas.
To date, the known reserves of oil amounted to 125 million barrels of oil and 92 billion cubic meters of natural gas. Saudi Arabia, the world's leading exporter, has 266 billion barrels in certified reserves. Qatar, the largest exporter of natural gas, has 24tn cubic metres of gas.
Bahrain is a Gulf monarchy ruled by a Sunni dynasty in a country where the majority of the population (at least 60-70%) is Shia and want constitutional changes and social and economic rights. In 2011 in the wake of the Arab Spring, riots broke out that the king of Bahrain – a US ally supported by Riyadh – put down with Saudi military aid.
Last year, authorities arrested and sentenced Shia activists and religious leaders and suspended the activities of Al-Wefaq, the main Shia opposition group, on charges of terrorism, extremism and violence as well as ties to a foreign power (i.e. Iran).