Raising gas production at Aghar Gas Field by 20 million cubic meters per day is on the agenda of Iranian Central Oil Fields Company, a subsidiary of the National Iranian Oil Company, the managing director said.
According to the NIOC website, Ramin Hatami said the program would boost output from the current 22 mcm per day to 42 mcm. He did not say when the project would be completed.
Aghar is among the large onshore gas fields in Iran. It is located 110 kilometers southeast of Shiraz in Fars Province.
Gas production from Aghar began in 1999. The field has 16 wells. Natural gas and condensates are separated after production for delivery to the Farashband Gas Refinery for processing via two (90-km each) pipelines.
Gas from Aghar is planned to be injected into oil fields in southern Iran, particularly Maroun. Aghar is equipped with wellhead installations and four gas-collection centers.
The field’s expansion involves drilling of six new gas wells and installation of a compressor system to uplift natural gas recovery rates to almost 71%.
South Zagros Oil and Gas Production Company, affiliated to ICOFC, will carry out the development program.
Infrastructure Expansion
Parallel to the plan to raise output, infrastructure will be built near the Farashband Refinery for processing.
Based in Shiraz, SZOGPC is in charge of fields in five southern provinces, namely Fars, Bushehr, Hormozgan, Kohgiloyeh-Boyerahmad, and Chaharmahal-Bakhtiyari.
Established in 1999, the ICOFC is one of the five major NIOC companies and supplies close to 40% of Iran’s domestic gas.
It is responsible for production of gas and oil from 76 reservoirs, comprising 45 gas fields and 31 oilfields.
The systematic growth in domestic consumption plus gas supply expansion programs across the country have compelled the Oil Ministry to permanently concentrate on costly (some say controversial) programs to raise gas production.
Time and again experts, environmentalists and energy officials have warned the people that the present rate of energy (water, gas, electricity, gasoline) consumption is not sustainable.
But such appeals so far have had no effect on consumers because the general opinion among informed circles is that energy prices are low and subsidies are the main culprit.
With the development of gas fields becoming a permanent feature of the ministry, average gas production has reached 850 mcm per day.
