Bahrain’s natural gas reserves, including non-associated gas are 10 trillion cubic feet, the MEED Bahrain Energy Forum was told.

This is higher than is conventionally associated with Bahrain and compares with the 7 trillion cubic feet reserve figure reported in the annual BP Statistical Review of Energy.

Tatweer Petroleum deputy CEO Hisham Zubari said the capacity of Bahrain’s gas-gathering system was now 2.3 billion cubic feet a day (cf/d) compared with 1.9bn cf/d at the end of 2009.

The increased availability of gas is increasing prospects of an early approval of major energy-based industries, including Aluminium Bahrain’s (Alba) line-six project, which will raise capacity to 1.2 million tonnes a year (t/y) in 2014 compared with the smelter’s current production of 880,000 t/y.