Publications

Survey of Energy Resources 2007

Natural Gas Country Notes

Note:

Gas reserves (as quoted by OAPEC and other published sources) are relatively low in regional terms and represent only about 2% of the Middle East total. All of Kuwait's natural gas production has been associated with crude oil, so that its availability has been basically dependent on the level of oil output. However, official announcements during 2006 of two major discoveries of non-associated gas have changed the picture. In March it was announced that almost 35 tcf (circa 1 000 bcm) of gas had been discovered in the 'southern north' part of Kuwait; this was followed in June by news of an extractable amount of almost 5 tcf (ca. 140 bcm) in the west of the country. These discoveries are not yet reflected in reserves assessments but, if validated, will have a significant impact in due course.

After allowing for a limited amount of flaring and for shrinkage due to the extraction of NGLs, Kuwait's gas consumption is currently about 13 bcm/yr, one-third of which is used for electricity generation and desalination of seawater.