Gas Eldorado? Not that soon. The professor explains where the catch is
An expert from Norway cools the enthusiasm around the gas deposit in the Baltic Sea. Five years to extract? This is a very optimistic version – he assesses.
The Canadian company Central European Petroleum announced the discovery of a large natural gas deposit under the bottom of the Pomeranian Gulf, just off the border with Germany. The size of the deposits was estimated at 200 million barrels of oil equivalent. This information caused enthusiasm, but the Norwegian expert warns against too far -reaching conclusions.
The scientist cools emotions
Professor Christian Holden from the Norwegian University of Technology in Trondheim, a center educating most specialists from the fuel industry in Norway, draws attention in a conversation with PAP that despite promising numbers, the deposit is not the largest. In Norwegian conditions, it would take a place in the middle of the rate – the expert pointed out.
As Holden emphasizes, the start of the exploitation of such a deposit is a time -consuming process. Each place requires an individual approach – a different infrastructure, construction and geological analysis. Standard projects do not exist, and each platform must be designed from scratch. Therefore, even apart from time -consuming administrative and environmental procedures, a five -year perspective of starting mining is – according to Holden – a very optimistic variant.
Gas pollution can be an additional challenge. The expert indicates that it may contain carbon dioxide, water and even sulfur, which requires costly purification before sending to the system. Added to this is the issue of pressure in the bed – if it is low, the compressors will be necessary from the beginning of mining.
Another aspect is performance – in practice the deposit is not completely exploited. On average, about 75 percent are recovered. raw material. Performance decreases over time, which further affects the profitability of the project.
How much will the state earn?
The Norwegian professor also notes that the actual profit for you depends on the model of participation in operation. If domestic companies have participation, the profits are higher – not only from taxes and concessions, but also from participation in operational profits.
Holden does not hide that for Norway such a deposit would be a reason to be satisfied, but it would not change the realities of the industry. For comparison – the largest gas field in Norway, a troll, is up to 50 times larger than the newly discovered deposit near Świnoujście. The next two are 20 times larger. According to the expert, it is impossible to plan the lasting development of the country only on the basis of this discovery.
