At the meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers held on February 6, President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov gave a series of instructions alongside with other assignments to the leadership of oil and gas sphere on further development of fuel-energy complex of the country, introduction into the sector of the leading technologies, attraction of foreign investments in the large infrastructural projects.
Modern Turkmenistan possesses not only huge resource base of onshore and offshore hydrocarbons, but also possibility of its exploitation. According to estimation of the experts, total potential hydrocarbon resources of the country came to 71.2 billion tons of standard fuel. Its 53billion tons is the share of land, and 18.2 billion tons – of marine part. More considerable part of these volumes – over 70 percent is the national gas.
It is quite explainable that taking the fourth place in the world on national gas reserves, Turkmenistan strives to expand considerably the exit to international gas market in order to use as efficiently as possible its natural resources. At present, Turkmen gas is exported in three directions: to Russia, Iran and China.
Turkmenistan-China pipeline, which was put into operation at the end of 2009, dynamically accelerates its capacities today. Carrying capacity of the first two branches of pipeline by the end of 2010 came to 30 billion cubic meters. At the end of 2014, the construction of the third branch with capacity of 25 billion cubic meters of gas per year was completed. In 2015, the capacity of pipeline from Turkmenistan to China will reach to 55 billion cubic meters per year. In September 2013, the leaders of Turkmenistan and PRC signed an agreement on construction of the fourth branch of gas pipeline with capacity of 25 billion cubic meters of gas per year. This branch will run through the route Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan-Tajikistan-Kyrgyzstan-China. Construction of the pipeline is planned to be completed in 2017.
At that, by 2017, the carrying capacity of pipeline system in the eastern direction will increase up to 80 billion cubic meters. According to the agreement signed between the Chinese national oil and gas corporation CNPC and “Tukmengaz” State Concern, Turkmenistan will annually export 65 billion cubic meters by the end of 2021.
Strategy of Turkmenistan on diversification of gas-export routes also envisages early expansion of production possibilities.
To date, the routes of diversification of the Turkmen natural gas were projected on the following directions:
– Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline – capacity of 65 cubic meters of tank gas per year;
– on available gas pipelines in direction of the Russian Federation – up to 10 billion cubic meters of tank gas per year, though the possibilities of existing infrastructure allow exporting considerably high volumes of gas;
– on available gas pipelines in direction of the Islamic Republic of Iran – up to 20 billion cubic meters of tank gas per year;
– Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipeline – capacity of 33 cubic meters of tank gas per year;
– Caspian gas pipeline – capacity of 30 cubic meters of tank gas per year.
Total export volumes of Turkmenistan are able to come to 160-170 billion cubic meters of tank gas per year with the prospect of annual increase by 10 billion cubic meters. At that, contracted on aforementioned directions the total maximally expected export volumes of gas during 30 year will come to nearly 5.4 trillion cubic meters whereas the reserves of only one super giant deposit “Galkynysh” and “Yashlar” are 26.2 trillion cubic meters. Exploratory works, going on here, determine further increase of its reserves.
In 2014, in Turkmenistan, the national gas production came to over 76 billion cubic meters, and export – over 45 billion cubic meters. In 2015, Turkmenistan plans to produce more than 80 billion cubic meters of tank gas. Taking into account the potential of gas fields, it is possible to declare confidently that Turkmenistan will fully provide the export deliveries of gas by all routes, including Iran, Russia, China, TAPI projects and Caspian as well as on other possible gas-export directions.
