Groningen Oil and Gas Field (Netherlands)

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Groningen Oil and Gas Field is an operating oil and gas field in Netherlands.

Project Details

Main Data

Table 1: Field-level project details for Groningen Oil and Gas Field

*Final Investment Decision
Unit name Status Operator Owner Discovery year FID* year Production start year
Groningen Operating[1] Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij B.V.[1] Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij B.V. (60.0%); EBN B.V. (40.0%)[2] 1959[1] – 1963[1]

Production and Reserves

Table 2: Reserves of Groningen Oil and Gas Field

million m³ = million cubic meters
Fuel Description Reserve Classification Quantity Units Data Year Source
gas 2P reserves 18462.5 million m³ 2020 [3]
gas originally recoverable stock 79286.42 million m³ 2021 [4]
gas reserves 1700 million m³ 2023 [5]

Table 3: Production from Groningen Oil and Gas Field

million m³/y = million cubic meters per year million bbl/y = million barrels of oil per year million m³ = million cubic meters
Category Fuel Description Quantity Units Data Year Source
cumulative production gas 2070000 million m³ 2017 [6]
cumulative production gas 2360393.7 million m³ 2021 [7]
production condensate 0.0 million bbl/y 2019 [8]
production gas 16417.0 million m³/y 2019 [8]
production gas 4809.38 million m³/y 2022 [8]
production condensate 0.0 million bbl/y 2022 [8]

Location

Table 4: field-level location details for Groningen Oil and Gas Field

Concession/Block Location Coordinates (WGS 84)
Groningen[5] Onshore, Netherlands[9] 53.287, 6.82 (exact)[9]

The map below shows the exact location of the field:

Loading map...

Background

Groningen was discovered in 1959 and began production in 1963.[10] At the time of discovery, it was the largest natural gas field in the world. It is still considered the largest natural gas field in Europe[11] and the ninth-largest in the world.[12] In was discovered in 1959 and began production in 1963.[10] As of 2020, 2,237.34 billion normal cubic meters of gas had been extracted from Groningen since 1971.[13] In the early 2010s, Groningen was expected to produce gas until around 2080.[14]

In 2009, the field consisted of about 300 wells, spread over 29 production clusters.[11] By 2016, it had 258 wells, spread over 22 production clusters.[14]

After protests in Groningen because of the increase in induced earthquakes, whose event count shows an exponential growth in time, the Dutch government decided on 17 January 2014 to cut output from the gas field and pay those affected by the earthquake a compensation worth 1.2 billion Euro, spread over a period of 5 years. Since 2018, the Dutch government has been responsible for decision-making about production from the field.[15] It said production would be cut in 2014 and 2015 to 42.5 bcm (billion cubic metres) and in 2016 to 40 bcm.[16]

The State Supervision of Mines has brought forward that the production level should be cut back to 30 bcm to avoid the more severe quakes. As of January 2015, no houses had been reinforced, nothing has been done about many seriously damaged buildings, and the risk of severe quakes, possibly resulting in collapsed buildings, injuries and death.[17][18] In June 2016, the Netherlands' National Mines Inspectorate advised the Dutch Government to reduce production even further to 24 bcm per year.[19] On 23 September 2016 Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte confirmed that gas extraction from the northern Groningen gas field will be held at 24 bcm per year for the coming five years.[20]

On March 29, 2018, the Dutch government decided to reduce the production of Groningen gas as quickly as possible from 21.6 bcm per year to zero by 2030[21] for safety reasons.[22]

In September 2019, the Dutch government announced a further acceleration of the decommissioning of the field, aiming to have production "no longer be necessary in from mid-2022." The 2019 Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy "Natural resources and geothermal energy in the Netherlands" Annual Report stated "if the phase-out proceeds according to plan, the field can be closed permanently in 2025/2026." [23][24]

In February 2021, the Dutch government decided to further reduce the field's forecasted gas output from 8.1 bcm to 3.9 bcm in the the 2021-2022 gas year. According the Enerdata, "after 2022, the field will be used as a reserve during an extremely cold situation and it should close in 2025-2026." The Dutch government has said that decreased production from the Groningen should not be offset by increasing production from the small gas fields in the country.[25]

Earthquakes

According to the New York Times, "decades of extraction [at Groningen] has reduced pressure on the gas-bearing rocks below the surface, causing them to contract. That has led the ground to sink by about a foot, and earthquakes have rumbled. More than a thousand tremors have been recorded since the mid-1980s. Thousands of homes and buildings have been damaged, including some of the region’s rich stock of medieval churches. Residents readily say they fear harm should quakes shake loose chimneys or ceilings."[15]

As a result, the Dutch government has announced plans to decommission the field. As of February 2021, regular production at the field is expected to cease by Spring 2022.[25]

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of oil and gas extraction sites, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Oil and Gas Extraction Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Rijkswaterstaat Noordzee and TNO (2023). "Velden". NLOG Dutch Oil and Gas portal. Archived from the original on Oct 30, 2023. Retrieved Oct 30, 2023.
  2. ↑ (PDF) https://www.ebn.nl/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Deelnemingenlijst-EBN-per-12-12-2016.pdf https://reports.shell.com/investors-handbook/2018/upstream/regional-overview/europe.html, https://www.ebn.nl/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Deelnemingenlijst-EBN-per-12-12-2016.pdf. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
  3. ↑ (PDF) https://web.archive.org/web/20220314092823/https://www.nlog.nl/sites/default/files/2020-11/annual_review_2019_natural_resources_and_geothermal_energy_en_18-11-2020.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 March 2022. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20230210081704/https://www.nam.nl/over-ons/onze-historie.html. Archived from the original on 10 February 2023. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 (PDF) https://www.nlog.nl/sites/default/files/2023-09/annual_review_2022_-_natural_resources_and_geothermal_energy_in_the_netherlands.pdf. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  6. ↑ (PDF) https://web.archive.org/web/20230428135754/https://www.energypolicy.columbia.edu/sites/default/files/pictures/CGEP_Groningen-Commentary_072518_0.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 April 2023. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20220621191521/https://www.nam.nl/feiten-en-cijfers.html. Archived from the original on 21 June 2022. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 "NLOG Datacenter Field Production Figures". Dutch Oil and Gas Portal. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Files interactive map". Dutch Oil and Gas Portal. February 2021. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Datacenter | NLOG". www.nlog.nl. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "The Groningen Gas Field". GEO ExPro. 2009-04-01. Retrieved 2021-02-13.
  12. ↑ "The Largest Natural Gas Fields In The World". WorldAtlas. Retrieved 2021-02-13.
  13. ↑ "Gas- en oliewinning". www.nam.nl (in Nederlands). Retrieved 2021-02-13.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 "Groningen gasfield | NLOG". www.nlog.nl. Retrieved 2021-02-13.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Reed, Stanley (2019-10-24). "Earthquakes Are Jolting the Netherlands. Gas Drilling Is to Blame. (Published 2019)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-02-13.
  16. ↑ "Dutch to cut output from huge Groningen gas field". Reuters. 17 January 2014. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
  17. ↑ "Minister visits earthquake-damaged homes in Groningen". 17 December 2014.
  18. ↑ Toby Sterling (23 June 2015). "UPDATE 2-Dutch government cuts Groningen gas field production". Reuters. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  19. ↑ "Dutch agency calls for further cut in Groningen gas after Oct. 1". Reuters. 22 June 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  20. ↑ "Dutch government confirms cut in Groningen gas output". Reuters. 23 September 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  21. ↑ Evert van de Graaf, W. J.; van Geuns, Lucia; Boersma, Tim (July 2018). "THE TERMINATION OF GRONINGEN GAS PRODUCTION—BACKGROUND AND NEXT STEPS" (PDF). Retrieved February 23, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  22. ↑ "Dutch to stop drilling for gas under Groningen by 2030". 2018-03-29.
  23. ↑ TNO-Advisory Group for Economic Affairs (July 2020). "Natural resources and geothermal energy in the Netherlands - Annual Review 2019" (PDF). nlog.nl. Directorate General of Climate and Energy of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy. Retrieved February 12, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  24. ↑ "Gaswinning Groningen stopt al in 2022". 2019-09-10.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 "The Netherlands caps Groningen gas production at 3.9 bcm in 2021-2022 | Enerdata". www.enerdata.net. Retrieved 2021-02-13.
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