Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang and Gurbanguly Berdymuhamedov, Tukmenistan’s former President and the current Chairman of its highest representative body, the Halk Maslahaty, have launched the fourth phase of industrial development of the Galkynysh gas field in Mary region.
Located about 400 km southeast of Ashgabat, the Galkynysh field has been producing natural gas since 2013 and is considered one of the world’s largest in terms of reserves. The British consulting firm GaffneyCline estimates the reserves of Galkynysh, together with the neighboring fields Garakol and Yashlar, at 27.4 trillion cubic meters of natural gas.
On April 16, the State Concern Turkmengas and China’s CNPC Amudarya Petroleum Company Ltd. signed a contract for the turnkey construction of the fourth phase of the field’s development. The project includes the drilling of production wells and the construction of a gas processing facility with a capacity of 10 billion cubic meters of commercial gas per year.
According to industry publication Nebit-Gaz, the Galkynysh field is being developed in phases. The first phase, which included the construction of three gas processing plants with a total capacity of 30 billion cubic meters per year, is currently operational. The second, third, and fourth phases are planned for the near future. Upon full development, the field’s gross annual production could reach nearly 200 billion cubic meters of natural gas.
The Galkynysh field serves as the main resource base for Turkmen gas exports to China.
China remains the largest buyer of Turkmen natural gas. Three lines (A, B, and C) of the Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline system currently deliver approximately 40 billion cubic meters of gas annually. With the planned commissioning of a fourth line (Line D), export volumes are expected to increase to around 65 billion cubic meters per year.
The resource base of Galkynysh is a key factor in the planned construction of Line D, which is expected to significantly increase gas supplies to China.
According to Guvanch Agajanov, Vice-Chairman of Turkmenistan’s Cabinet of Ministers, total Turkmen gas exports to China have exceeded 462 billion cubic meters over the past 20 years.
The Galkynysh field has also been designated as the resource base for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline, which is under construction and is expected to have a capacity of 33 billion cubic meters per year.
