The Natural Gas Research Institute of the Türkmengaz State Concern successfully solves a set of tasks for the development of the domestic fuel and energy complex, performing research and design work in the field of geological exploration, the development and operation of fields, drilling, the development and reconstruction of almost all gas industry facilities, including gas processing and transportation of finished products.

Its director Bayrammyrat Kakabayevich Pirniyazov told readers of the electronic newspaper ussatnews.com about the activities of the Research Institute.

“Bayrammyrat Kakabayevich, how did the work of the Research Institute begin and what are the directions of the Institute’s activities today? 

“The formation of our Institute was carried out simultaneously with the development of the industry as a whole. For many years of work in the gas fields of our country, the Institute has accumulated invaluable experience in the optimal development of gas and gas condensate fields and has developed scientific, technological and methodological approaches to solving urgent problems associated with their development. 

“Currently, the Institute of the branch operates in all velayats of the country. Gas and gas condensate fields of eastern Turkmenistan are developed according to scientifically based projects of scientists and specialists of the Natural Gas Institute or with their direct participation. 

“To achieve the goals set by the Program of the Development of the Oil and Gas Industry of Turkmenistan until 2030 and to increase the volume of natural gas production, scientists and specialists successfully solve the tasks of assessing geological resources and designing the development of gas and gas condensate fields.” 

“What promising research is being carried out at the Institute?” 

“Together with the subdivisions of the oil and gas complex, the Institute carries out systematic work aimed at realizing the huge potential of the country’s natural resources. This activity includes the economic justification of the effectiveness of involvement in the development of gas and gas condensate fields in new gas producing regions, the ensuring of the efficient operation of existing fields and the creation of technologies for the efficient development of small, large and giant gas fields at various stages of development, including a super-giant gas field Galkynyş. 

“The Institute specialists are also engaged in the creation of efficient technologies for gas transportation at boost pressures, diagnostic systems and new-generation technical means to maintain the reliability and efficiency of gas production and gas supply system facilities. 

“The main activities of our Institute in the field of geological exploration are the generalization of geological and geophysical data by regions and zones, the assessment of knowledge about them, the clarification of the geological structure and prospects for oil and gas content, the issuance of recommendations on the areas of regional and prospecting work, the geological and economic assessment of oil and gas promising areas and the rationale for licensing plans. 

“In addition, the specialists of the Institute are engaged in the interpretation of a set of geophysical data based on systems of the statistical processing and analysis of multidimensional parameters, the creation of digital geological and geophysical models of areas and zones of prospecting and exploration work, the adjustment of the geological structure of oil and gas promising areas, the operational analysis of the exploration of hydrocarbon deposits and the development of geological projects for prospecting and exploration drilling. 

“Specialists at the Research Institute are also engaged in refining the geological and field characteristics of hydrocarbon fields, creating three-dimensional digital geological models, calculating resources and providing geological and field support for the development of gas fields. 

“On the basis of core data and geological and geophysical materials, the scientists of the Institute create geological and field models of gas and gas condensate fields. In this case, both licensed and author’s programs created at the Natural Gas Research Institute are used.” 

“Bayrammyrat Kakabayevich, tell us about the achievements of the Institute and its contribution to the development of the country’s oil and gas complex.” 

“On the recommendations and with the direct participation of scientists and specialists of the Institute, more than 30 deposits and new fields have been discovered, including Döwletabat, Malaý, Ýaşlar and Galkynyş. Much work is being done in the sphere of field development. Our specialists draw up projects for pilot operation, the development of and adjustments to projects for the development and additional development of gas and gas condensate fields. 

“Based on the analysis of field operation, recommendations are issued to production units on changing the development technology, increasing the coefficients of gas and condensate recovery of reservoirs and establishing optimal technological modes of well operation in complicated conditions: in case of watering, sand production, the increased content of acidic components (hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide) in natural gas and others. Today, the results of scientific and technical research have been introduced into production at dozens of production wells and an additional increase in gas flow rate has been obtained for each well. 

“For fields newly introduced into development, the specialists of the laboratory of our Institute select a rational well placement grid, the order of their drilling and perforation intervals. Much work is being done to intensify the flow rate of gas and gas condensate wells and to determine ways of developing them under conditions of abnormally low and abnormally high reservoir pressures. Calculation determines the timing of the commissioning of BCSs and their capacity.” 

“Speaking at the International Forum on attracting foreign investments in the oil and gas industry of Turkmenistan, held in Dubai, you touched upon one of the topical issues – environmental safety. What work is being carried out by the relevant departments of the Institute you head in this direction?” 

“The Institute pays special attention to research and design developments in the field of industrial and environmental safety. The Institute implements projects in the field of environmental regulation of the impact of industrial enterprises on the environment, the introduction of environmental passports in production and the substantiation of environmental limits. Design engineering and environmental surveys are also being carried out, environmental impact assessment of investment projects and construction and reconstruction projects of existing enterprises is being made, environment protection measures and regulations for industrial environmental monitoring and control are being developed, and the author’s supervision of the implementation of environmental measures, environmental monitoring and control are being performed.” 

“Bayrammyrat Kakabayevich, specialists of the Natural Gas Research Institute of the Türkmengaz State Concern studied options for solving the urgent problem of utilizing sulfur obtained when preparing for the transport of large volumes of natural gas produced at the Galkynyş field. Tell about it.” 

“Yes, they did. I would like to note that in Turkmenistan, thanks to the discovery of the super-giant Galkynyş field and other giant gas fields, including Ýaşlar, Garaköl and the Garajaovlak group, in the future, natural gas production will increasingly be associated with sour gas. In this regard, the problem of sulfur utilization is of great importance, and it requires an urgent solution, from the point of view of both technology and ecology. One of the best ways to solve this problem is the injection of acid gases into underground reservoirs. Several options have been considered at our Natural Gas Research Institute, including the use of aquifers, the re-injection of hydrogen sulfide or liquid sulfur into the reservoir aquifer and the injection into depleted deposits of neighboring fields. The main idea of reservoir utilization of hydrogen sulfide is to use regionally developed Lower Paleogene highly porous cavernous carbonate-sulfate deposits of the Bukhara horizon of the Paleocene or to use closely spaced depleted gas fields, where productive sandstone formations contain nitrous and iron oxides. 

“The Institute also carries out comprehensive diagnostic work using modern multifunctional instruments, which makes it possible to determine the nature of the detected defects and to monitor their development in order to safely operate oil and gas equipment.” 

“Bayrammyrat Kakabayevich, what work is being done at the Natural Gas Institute to ensure the stability of gas production?” 

“As you know, natural gas consumption fluctuates depending on the season of the year, in winter it increases significantly. Since Turkmenistan is a guarantor of the energy security of the entire Central Asian region, in order to ensure the stability of gas supplies, both for domestic consumption and for the external energy market, the need for underground storage facilities is obvious. In order to solve this currently important task, our Institute has begun work on studying issues related to determining the required capacity of underground natural gas storage facilities, searching for and exploring suitable geological structures.” 

“Bayrammyrat Kakabayevich, thank you very much for the interview. I wish you every success in implementing the tasks set by our esteemed President Serdar Berdimuhamedov for the development of the country’s oil and gas complex.”

Ussa Ussayev,
Editor-in-Chief of the Nebit-Gaz Newspaper