Gas well 61 in Dong Co commune, Tien Hai district (Photo: petrovietnam.petrotimes.vn) Hanoi (VNA) - Gas well 61, the first well found in March 1975 at the Tien Hai C structure in Dong Co commune, Tien Hai district, in the northern province of Thai Binh, created a foundation for Vietnam to enter into the promising gas sector.
Vietnam has found a wide range of gas wells whose reserves are much larger than well 61, such as Ca Voi Xanh (Blue Whale) field and Ken Bau field. However, well 61 will forever be a turning point for the country’s oil and gas development, as envisaged by President Ho Chi Minh in 1959.
The oil and gas industry has achieved various milestones thanks to the discovery of the well, with the first industrial gas flow being used to generate 10MW of electricity in Thai Binh province on April 19, 1981, and the first commercial gas flow taken to shore from the Bach Ho oilfield in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau in May 1995.
Before 1995, gas separated from crude oil at rigs was fired because Vietnam’s facilities at that time were not good enough to collect and transport gas to shore. Together with increasing oil exploitation, the amount of burnt gas became larger, causing environmental pollution and waste of the natural resource.
To this end, the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) worked to build and put gas facilities into operation, helping to use gas resources in an effective manner while meeting energy demand for the nation’s economic development.
The PetroVietnam Gas Corporation (PV GAS) was then established, and played a leading role in the nation’s gas sector.
Over the past 30 years, PV GAS developed sound infrastructure for the gas sector valued at more than 62 trillion VND (2.68 billion USD), comprising five gas systems with more than 1,200 km of pipes, three gas treatment plants, 13 liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) warehouses with a capacity of nearly 100,000 tonnes, and a gas distribution system.
Each year, PV GAS supplies materials for the production of nearly 20 percent of the country’s power and 70 percent of nitrogenous fertiliser. Holding the lion’s share of the domestic dry gas and LPG market, the corporation has also affirmed its important role in the global market in the LPG business./.
VNA
