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Gas capture program bolsters Tawke oil production

As Kurdistan's authorities crack down on flaring, a $110 million project by Norway's DNO shows how capturing the associated gas produced along with crude can help both the environment and the bottom line.
Workers measure the pressure at the Central Processing Facility at the Tawke oil field in Iraqi Kurdistan in August 2012. (SEBASTIAN MEYER/Metrography/Iraq Oil Report)

DOHUK PROVINCE - Over the past few years, Norway's DNO has faced uncertainty around when it would be able to drill more wells to offset the natural decline of existing production at Tawke, one of the most prolific fields in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq that is now down by more than two-thirds from its peak production reached in 2015.

Now, even without new drilling, reservoir pressure is getting a much-needed boost: a new plant at DNO's nearby Peshkabir field is processing 30 million standard cubic feet per day (scf/d) of associated gas, which is produced along with crude oil, and pumping it through a high-pressure pipeline for injection into Tawke's reservoir. It's a success story that underscores the potential commercial benefits associated with capturing rather than burning associated gas.

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