Bahrain, the smallest oil producer among the Gulf Cooperation Council nations, announced the estimated reserves of its newly announced 'giant' shale oil discovery in western Bahrain, according to international media outlets on Thursday.
The newly discovered field is estimated to hold more than 80 billion barrels of oil, Bahrain's Minister of Oil Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al-Khalifa was quoted as saying by media outlets.
Bahrain and Oman are the two countries bordering the Persian Gulf that are not members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
The country receives revenues from two oil fields: the onshore Bahrain Awali field, and the offshore Abu Safah field, which is jointly shared with Saudi Arabia, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration's (EIA) country analysis.
The Bahrain onshore field produced around 50,500 barrels per day (b/d) of crude oil in 2015, up from 48,800 b/d in 2014, the EIA reports.
The volume of natural gas reserves in the newly discovered field in western Bahrain, known as the Khalij Al-Bahrain Basin, is estimated at around 10 to 20 trillion cubic feet, according to media outlets.
International oil companies are conducting studies on the amount of recoverable shale oil under the sea while Bahrain's oil minister has invited more companies to join this effort, the outlets noted.
Media outlets also reported that production from the field is expected to begin within five years while unlocking oil and gas resources would require hydraulic fracturing, making the production difficult and expensive.
By Ebru Sengul
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr