The government has laid emphasis on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in optimising oil extraction from Sylhet-10 well and other prospective gas and oil fields across the country.
The energy ministry hopes that the commercial extraction of oil from the Sylhet-10 well will start in two months. There is one layer of fuel oil and three layers of natural gas in this well, according to ministry sources.
State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid has recently urged the drilling companies to utilise modern technologies, including AI to optimise oil extraction from the Sylhet field.
AI can evaluate vast amounts of geological data and forecast the probability of finding oil and gas reservoirs by using AI. Traditional oil and gas exploration mainly depends on fieldwork performed by humans, which is prone to error.
The discovery of the Sylhet-10 well has created optimism about energy reserves across the country. Sylhet, which is historically renowned for its substantial natural gas reserves.
Sinopec, a Chinese company, has completed the drilling operation on an approximately 8.5-acre plot under the supervision of Sylhet Gas Fields Limited.
The deputy chief information officer of Ministry of Power, Energy
and Mineral Resources Mir Mohammad Aslam Uddin told the Bangladesh Post that the ministery is pushing Sinopec and Sylhet Gas Fields Ltd to use cutting-edge technologies like AI to streamline the oil and gas exploration process.
He also said the traditional oil exploration and prediction process is still in place, but it needs to be updated.
Aslam Uddin further said by analysing massive datasets, including seismic surveys, well logs, satellite imagery, and geological data, AI and ML in the oil and gas industry are revolutionising exploration process. With the aid of machine learning algorithms, geologists can more precisely locate possible oil reservoirs by spotting patterns and anomalies in this data.
According to experts, the search for new oil reserves has always been a difficult and expensive task as exploration teams and geologists have to go through many obstacles. But the advent of AI has brought in a new era of accuracy and efficiency, revolutionising how businesses look for and find hydrocarbon resources.
The AI’s use cases include supply chain management powered by AI, robotic process automation (RPA) for back-office work, oil spill and hydrocarbon detection and response, regulatory compliance, oil exploration, predictive maintenance, handling price fluctuations, and enhanced safety.
On December 8, last year, while drilling Sylhet-10 gas field, oil was found in the well. Mining engineers have reported the discovery of crude oil reserves at a depth of approximately 1,500 meters beneath the well, alongside substantial natural gas reserves across the remaining layers. During the Drill Stem Test (DST), the well demonstrated an automatic pressure-induced flow of 35 barrels of oil per hour. Initial estimations project oil and gas reserves ranging from 15 to 18 million barrels, potentially sustaining extraction operations for 8 to 10 years. The API gravity was initially determined to be 29.7 degrees.
According to BAPEX's assessment, oil reserves may amount to 15 to 18 million barrels, with an expected yield of 500 to 600 barrels of oil per day. Initially, the reserves are estimated to be 8 to 10 million barrels. Eastern Refinery and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) carrying out quality test on the crude oil.
Nasrul Hamid recently visited the Sylhet-10 oil field site to evaluate the efficiency of the crude oil found there. Responding to journalists' queries, he stated that the government is conducting further testing to commence commercial oil extraction.
He highlighted ongoing evaluations to determine the quantity and viability of the oil reservoirs, emphasizing the importance of scientific validation. He affirmed the government's readiness to deploy advanced technologies, including AI, if necessary, to optimise extraction processes.
Energy experts suggest simultaneous drilling of multiple wells in the region.
Professor Dr Badrul Islam, a noted energy expert, stressed the need for modernizing the exploration practices of Bangladesh's energy sector aligned to international standards, particularly focusing on drilling development process and increasing productivity.
Ministry sources said that the Energy Department is likely to initiate drilling of two additional wells—one for oil and the other for gas at the same field —in the near future.
There is prospect for recoverable resources worth about Tk 18-20 billion from oil and gas combined in the Sylhet-10 well, the sources added.
