The Bazna gas field is a natural gas field located in

Bazna Bazna (german: Baaßen; Transylvanian Saxon dialect: ''Baußen''; hu, Bázna) is a commune located in Sibiu County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Bazna, Boian (''Bonnesdorf''; ''Bonnesdref''; ''Alsóbajom'') and Velț ( ...

, Sibiu County, Romania. Discovered in 1912, it was developed by

Romgaz Societatea Națională de Gaze Naturale Romgaz SA Mediaș (SNGN Romgaz SA) or simply Romgaz is the largest natural gas producer in Romania and one of the largest producers in Eastern Europe. The company is the country's main supplier and responsib ...

, beginning production of natural gas and condensates in 1915. By 2010 the total proven reserves of the Bazna gas field were around 1.06 trillion ft³ (30 km³), with a production rate of around 23.8 million ft³/day (0.67×10⁵ m³). There are numerous mentions attesting natural gas emanations in the Transylvanian Plateau. The existence of natural gas in Transylvania was known since the 17th century. People in Bazna were often puzzled by " inextinguishable fires". In 1671, while some shepherds at Bazna were lighting a fire, they incidentally discovered a gas inrush. The gas deposits in Romania have a very long history of exploitation, almost unique at the level of Europe and among the few such old fields that are still in production in the world. A quarter of Romania's natural gas reserves () are located in Western Moldavia,

Muntenia Muntenia (, also known in English as Greater Wallachia) is a historical region of Romania, part of Wallachia (also, sometimes considered Wallachia proper, as ''Muntenia'', ''Țara Românească'', and the seldom used ''Valahia'' are synonyms in R ...

, and the Black Sea, with the remaining 75% located near methane gas reserve sites in Transylvania. A fifth of these sites are located in the

Giurgeu-Brașov Depression The Giurgeu-Brașov Depression (in Romanian, ''Depresiunea Giurgeu-Brașovului'') is a series of intermontane basins in Romania. The basin is considered part of the Inner Eastern Carpathians. Within Romania, however, it is traditional to divide ...

and Sibiu County, with the remainder located in Mureș County at sites such as Luduș,

Șincai Șincai ( hu, Mezősámsond, Hungarian pronunciation: ) is a commune in Mureș County, Transylvania, Romania composed of four villages: Lechincioara (''Kislekence''), Pusta (''Feketepuszta''), Șincai and Șincai-Fânațe (''Édeságtelek''). ...

, and Nadeș. In the

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the World War I, First World War to the beginning of the World War II, Second World War. The in ...

, Romania's program of geological works and drilling was amplified, highlighting the gas deposits from

Copșa Mică Copșa Mică (german: Kleinkopisch; hu, Kiskapus) is a town in Sibiu County, Transylvania, Romania, located north of Sibiu, 33 km east of Blaj, and 12 km southwest of Mediaș. The town's population of 5,201 (as of 2011) is significan ...

, Bazna, Șaroș, and

. At Bazna, natural gases were trapped by means of cones mounted above the shafts where mineral water was extracted; the gas was used to illuminate the local promenades. As recorded in 1933, the gas extracted at Bazna was 97.9% methane, 1.5%

acetylene Acetylene (systematic name: ethyne) is the chemical compound with the formula and structure . It is a hydrocarbon and the simplest alkyne. This colorless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block. It is unstable in its pure ...

, and 0.6% carbon dioxide. In 2010, Romgaz announced that it will construct a direct road from Mediaș, where its headquarters are located, to the Bazna commune—about to the northwest—to facilitate access to the wells at the gas field. Romgaz also operates a spa complex and sports recreation center in Bazna, mostly for its 6,000 employees.

References

Natural gas fields in Romania {{Romania-geo-stub

See also

References