PETROLEUM Sarawak Bhd (Petros) is kicking off Sarawak’s carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) industry by calling for bids to three sites it had identified.
A “bid round” in the oil and gas industry refers to a process in which a government or regulatory body invites oil and gas companies to submit bids for the rights to explore, develop, and produce hydrocarbons in specific geographic areas or blocks.
The government or regulatory authority specifies the blocks or areas available for bidding, the terms and conditions, and the timeline for the process.
The first site is a saline aquifer in the southwest and western Luconia province, which Petros said “will be the centre of energy growth supporting the establishment of the Kuching Economic Hub”.
The site, the company added, will enable sour gas fields development and decarbonisation of new industries in Kuching as well as existing local emissions.
The second site comprises several depleted fields nearing the end of their field life in the Balingian province.
Petros said this site’s proximity to shore “aligns with the potential development of a new onshore gas plant”.
The third site features saline aquifers and depleted fields in the Central Luconia province, which has “high-quality reservoirs and existing oil and gas infrastructure”.
Petros said a nearby sour gas field development offers the potential of an integrated development opportunity.
The state-owned petroleum company said each of the carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) sites offer “unique advantages and opportunities for successful CCUS studies with an estimated total storage capacity of approximately 1,000 million tonnes (MT) CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent )”.
The Sarawak bid round (SBR) 2024 here today, with the theme “Advancing CCUS for Sarawak and Beyond”, underscores Petros’ commitment to driving CCUS innovation and contributing to the region’s net zero goals, the petroleum company said.
It was attended by some 200 by invitation only representatives from multinational companies, including upstream players, carbon emitters, infrastructure developers, service providers, shipping companies, financial institutions, and consultancy firms.
Nazrin Banu Shaikh Sajjad Ahmad, Petros’ senior vice president for Sarawak Resource Management, said the Sarawak bid round was “more than just an event”.
“It is a strategic milestone towards a low-carbon economy,” she said as she invited “forward-thinking companies” to join Petros in the economic development of Sarawak by leveraging on its vast CCUS geological potential”.
“Through purposeful collaboration between Petros as the resource manager of CCUS and competent companies, Sarawak can achieve its vision to be the regional low-carbon solution provider of choice and establish Sarawak as the CCUS heartland for the Asia Pacific region.”
Nazrin at the launch also disclosed that the Adong Kechil West onshore oil field in Block SK433, about 24 km from Miri town, is “progressing well” towards its first production and commercialisation next year.
Petros was awarded the exploration licence for the field in July 2021 by the Sarawak government under the Sarawak Oil Mining Ordinance 1958.
On October 11, last year, Petros and Petra Energy Bhd announced the commencement of its first drilling at the block.
The drilling was significant as it was the first time in more than three decades that oil is being explored onshore Sarawak again.
Block SK433 covers an area of approximately 3,100 km² located in the northern region of Sarawak.
Petra is a Sarawak-owned company that began in Miri 35 years ago.
“In addition to CCUS, Petros is also committed to rejuvenating onshore oil and gas potential in Sarawak,” she said.
“Replicating this success is key for onshore upstream rejuvenation, and Petros is investing significantly to de-risk the petroleum system element and further upgrade onshore prospectivity in all onshore blocks, particularly in Blocks SK334 (Limbang-Lawas), SK431 and SK441 (Oya-Mukah-Balingian).
Currently, we are carrying out more studies through seismic reprocessing and seismic acquisition and looking into the application of enhanced full tensor gravity technology in onshore Sarawak,” she said. – July 24, 2024.
