Petrobangla has begun drilling a development well of Shahbazpur Gas Field in the southern district of Bhola.
Russian state-controlled gas giant Gazprom was appointed as the contractor for drilling the Tagbi-1 well.
The Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company (Bapex), a subsidiary of Petrobangla, appointed Gazprom as a part of the government's initiative to increase domestic production amid a volatile global liquefied natural gas (LNG) market.
Mahbub Hossain, senior secretary at the Energy and Mineral Resources Division, inaugurated the drilling activity on Friday while Petrobangla Chair Nazmul Ahsan was also present there.
"The Tagbi-1 drilling initiative is part of Petrobangla's plan to dig 46 wells across the country by 2025," Nazmul said.
Gazprom will drill the development well up to a 3,500-metre depth. After the completion of drilling, the well is expected to produce 20-25 million cubic feet (mmcft) of gas daily.
Under the project, two more exploratory wells will be drilled in Ilisha-1 and Bhola North-2, Nazmul added.
Shahbazpur Gas Field was discovered by Bapex in 1995. Gas production from the field started in May 2009.
