TEHRAN (Iran News) –The platform of Iran’s South Pars (SP) Phase 11 was installed in the Persian Gulf on Wednesday.
The installation operation of SP Phase 11 platform planned by National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) and Pars Oil and Gas Company (POGC) started on Tuesday and was successfully completed on Wednesday in collaboration with Petropars Company and Iranian Offshore Engineering and Construction Company (IOEC) by using the Oceanic-5000 Crane Barge.
The 3,200-ton platform, the heaviest in the South Pars gas field, was moved and installed in an unprecedented operation by Iranian experts, and gas production from the strategic phase will start soon after 20 years.
The target gas output from South Pars Phase 11 is 56 million cubic meters per day (mcm/d).
Addressing the ceremony Oil Minister Javad Owji said that Phase 11 of Iran’s South Pars (SP) gas field will yield four to five billion dollars annually.
Pointing to a 22-year delay in development of this phase, the minister added its output will help reduce the gap between production and consumption of gas in the country.
The installation operation of SP Phase 11 platform was carried out by National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), Pars Oil and Gas Company (POGC), Petropars Company, and Iranian Offshore Engineering and Construction Company (IOEC), he mentioned.
Based on the contract, French company Total was to get some $4.9 billion to develop Phase 11, recalled Owji, adding the company withdrew and missed the opportunity, as the project was implemented amid sanctions by Iranian experts.
President Seyyed Ebrahim Raeisi will inaugurate the SP Phase development project soon, said Owji, adding gas production from Phase 11 will be up to 15 million cubic meters per day (mcm/d) in the first stage and will gradually reach 50 mcm/d.
Phase 11 was the only undeveloped part of South Pars joint field and the other side [Qatar] kept extracting gas during the delay in implementing the development project in Iran, he regretted.
Owji said his ministry has carried out prioritized projects, including inauguration of Abadan Refinery Phase 2, inauguration of Phase 14 refinery, inauguration of the first phase of NGL 3200 plant in Hoveyzeh, and installation of Phase 11 platform.
He added that Iran has become self-sufficient in constructing refinery and petrochemical plant, and also developing oil and gas fields.
Talking to reporters on the sidelines of the official ceremony of transfer and installation of the platform of South Pars (SP) Phase 11, the minister hailed the “creative” task of transporting and installing the platform and added it was manufactured three years earlier than the due time.
French company Total and CNPC International, a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), signed a $4.9 billion contract to develop South Pars Phase 11, but they withdrew under tough conditions caused by sanctions, he said.
“The SP Phase 11 development project was completed by the 13th (incumbent) administration through exploiting full capacity and its platform was installed,” continued Owji, announcing that it will become operational with an initial gas output of 12 to 15 million cubic meters per day (mcm/d) within few weeks.
Four wells of the phase have been activated and two more will come on stream within few months, mentioned the minister, saying gas produced there will increase the country’s revenue and help redress imbalance between gas production and consumption in winter.
Meanwhile the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) managing director said transportation of the South Pars Phase 11 is “unparalleled” in the history of the country’s oil industry in terms of execution and complexity.
Addressing the official ceremony of transfer and installation of the Phase 11 platform, Mohsen Khojastehmehr added his company officially engaged in the development project of the phase, continuing, “In addition, we put manufacture of platform jacket and second platform on the agenda to complete the development, and the Iranian companies, which signed the related contract, are currently building it.”
The project will help redress imbalance between domestic gas production and consumption, and will also increase the country’s annual revenue by $5 billion.
The NIOC CEO said development of South and North Azadegan oil fields in southwestern Iran is underway.
Last year, 40 new oil wells came on stream, increasing the daily output by 45,000 barrels, explained Khojastehmehr, adding 40 more wells will become functional this year, which will add 60,000 barrels to Azadegan’s oil production.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) worth $7 billion was signed in the presence of President Seyyed Ebrahim Raeisi in the previous year, and a seven-billion-dollar contract on integrated development of the second phase of Azadegan field will be inked this year, he said.
Khojastehmehr talked of maximum production in Hengam joint oil field in the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf, stating that Iran-Oman talks on joint production and development are underway.
Iran and Oman signed an agreement on their joint study on shared Hengam oil field last month.
The agreement is aimed at preparing a Master Development Plan (MDP) for the field, and different plans for further development and bilateral cooperation on exploitation of the field.
