U.S. and Chinese oil companies expand associated gas development projects

Oil and gas production increase drives associated gas production expansion

　　As we all know, oil extraction is often accompanied by a large amount of associated gas
.
According to the ICIS report, American oil producers have also produced a large amount of associated natural gas while increasing crude oil production.
Medium-sized oil and gas companies are urgently needed to drain excess natural gas from oil wells and lay the foundation for the next step to increase production of more crude oil
.
At present, US medium-sized oil and gas companies are investing heavily in the construction of new associated gas projects, including natural gas pipelines, natural gas processing plants, fractionation towers, etc.
, and extract ethane, propane and other natural gas liquids from raw natural gas
.
The completion of these projects will provide American chemical companies with more raw materials and help the United States continue to maintain the raw material cost advantage of chemical products
.

　　Mid-sized oil and gas companies are building more associated gas projects due to increased oil and gas production in the Permian Basin and the Gulf Coast, according to ICIS
.
At present, oil and gas production in the Permian Basin has returned to pre-COVID-19 levels and is hitting a record high.
Production in other oil and gas production areas is also gradually recovering, and natural gas production in some production areas has also hit record highs
.
According to the U.
S.
Energy Information Administration (EIA), oil production in the Permian Basin will hit a record high of 5.
2189 million barrels per day in June this year, and natural gas production will hit a record high of 20.
039 billion cubic feet per day
.
Natural gas production in other parts of the United States is also expected to hit record highs in June, such as the Appalachian production region, which hit a record 35.
67 billion cubic feet per day, and the Haynesville, Louisiana production region.
of natural gas production will also set a new record of 15.
102 billion cubic feet per day
.

　　Oil companies have drilled many high-quality wells, but to produce new wells, associated gas must be cleaned up
.
This is a good opportunity for medium-sized oil and gas companies to increase investment
.
Midland oil and gas company Enterprise Products plans to open its Plant 6 natural gas processing plant in the Midland Basin in the second quarter of 2023, executives said
.
The plant will process 300 million cubic feet of natural gas per day
.
In addition, the company's Mentone II natural gas processing plant, which will be commissioned in the second half of 2023, will process 300 million cubic feet of natural gas per day
.
In addition, the company is considering laying a natural gas pipeline in Texas and building a fractionation plant
.
By 2025, the company is also preparing to commission another ethane export terminal on the Gulf Coast
.
Enterprise Products also plans to double its ethylene export capacity to 2 million tonnes a year by 2025
.

　　Other mid-sized oil and gas players are not far behind, with MPLX, WhiteWater and a joint venture of Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners and West Texas Gas planning to expand the capacity of the Whistler gas pipeline from 2 billion cubic feet per day to 2.
5 billion cubic feet per day feet/day
.
The expansion project will be commissioned in September 2023 and will connect southern Texas in the Permian Basin
.
In the second half of 2022, MPLX plans to open the Tornado-2 natural gas processing plant in the Delaware Basin of West Texas with a design capacity of 200 million cubic feet per day
.
"The Permian Basin is a huge growth area for the company," said Greg Flock, MPLX's chief operating officer
.
"I think that's going to continue, and it's clear that crude oil prices and natural gas prices are both historically high and related to export capacity.
This segment will continue to grow
.
”

　　EnLink Midstream is moving a natural gas processing plant from central Oklahoma to the Midland Basin in western Texas
.
EnLink expects to complete the project in the fourth quarter of 2022 and will bring 200 million cubic feet per day of gas processing capacity to the Midland Basin
.
Most recently, the company agreed to buy Crestwood Equity Partners' North Texas gathering pipeline and natural gas processing plant for $275 million
.
The deal includes three natural gas processing plants with a combined processing capacity of 425 million cubic feet per day
.
In addition, EnLink, WhiteWater, Devon Energy and MPLX made a final investment decision to build the Matterhorn Express Pipeline, which will transport 2.
5 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas from the Permian Basin to the Katy area near Houston
.
The project will be commissioned in the third quarter of 2024
.

　　Kinder Morgan is seeking commitments to expand its Permian Freeway gas pipeline by nearly 650 million cubic feet per day
.
The expanded pipeline will carry natural gas from the Waha region of western Texas to Katy and other markets in the Gulf of Mexico
.
Kinder Morgan is preparing another expansion project, the Gulf Coast Rapid Pipeline, which will add nearly 570 million cubic feet per day of gas transmission capacity
.
The pipeline, which will carry natural gas from the Permian Basin to southern Texas, should begin operations on Dec.
1, 2023, if Kinder Morgan moves forward with the expansion
.

　　Targa Resources is expanding the processing capacity of two existing natural gas processing plants in the Midland Basin of West Texas, which will add 550 million cubic feet per day of processing capacity when completed
.
The first project will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2022 and the second in the second quarter of 2023
.
The company is building a new natural gas processing plant in the Permian Basin of western Texas, which is expected to begin operations in the third quarter of 2023
.