Abstract: A surface installation exhausts gas from the annulus of a pumping oil well. The installation includes a tank containing fresh water, a pump-motor arrangement taking fresh water from the tank and delivering it to a jet pump having a suction inlet connected to the annulus and an outlet delivering gas and fresh water back into the tank. The tank acts to separate the gas from the fresh water and vents the gas through a vent tube. The suction pressure of the jet pump is monitored and turns on the oil well pumping unit when the pressure at the jet pump suction declines to a predetermined low value. After the pump is turned on, the pressure at the jet pump suction rises. When it rises to a predetermined value, the oil well pumping unit is turned off.