With New Wells, Ina Increases Domestic Gas Production by 10 Percent

In the upcoming period, domestic gas production is expected to increase, but these additional quantities will not significantly help meet Croatian needs. If Russia halts gas supplies to Europe, Croatia, despite LNG, will not have enough gas unless foreign LNG terminal lessees decide to sell gas to us rather than to other buyers, as recently reported by Lider.

The Hydrocarbon Agency stated that the recently opened gas production well – IKA-B in the northern Adriatic will produce 150,000 m3 per day, while the Marica well will soon commence production, producing between 40,000 and 50,000 m3 per day.

– With these two wells, INA will produce 200,000 m3 of gas per day, which is 10 percent of the current production of the Republic of Croatia. Edison, which remains present in the Adriatic with INA, has a joint project – the Irena well, which will start production in 2024. It is estimated that Irena will produce 550,000 m3 of gas per day, which, along with the previously mentioned wells, accounts for 25 percent of total gas production in Croatia. Starting in August, INA will also begin exploratory drilling in existing production fields, which will certainly contribute to future gas production with five new platforms, the Hydrocarbon Agency stated.

New hydrocarbon production in Croatia is also expected in the near future in the Pannonian Basin in some of the exploration areas being investigated by companies INA – Industrija nafte d.d., Vermilion Zagreb Exploration, and Aspect Croatia Kft.

– Expectations are that the Canadian company Vermilion will bring new quantities of natural gas from the Berak and Cerić production fields in eastern Slavonia into production in the upcoming period, with initial quantities of 250,000 m3/d per well. We also expect the introduction of new gas reserves discovered through exploratory activities by INA d.d., with estimated initial quantities at the level of 55,700 m3/d.

We also expect that contracts signed in 2020 with companies Aspect Croatia Kft. and Vermilion Zagreb Exploration for the central and northwestern Croatia area will be equally successful, but of course, we must be patient and wait for the research results. Namely, the companies signed contracts in 2020, and then we found ourselves in a pandemic that slowed down all economic activities globally, the Hydrocarbon Agency stated.