The development of Danan Oilfield in Ilam Province is underway and so far the drilling of four wells out of 11 have been completed and the field’s production has increased to 14,000 barrels per day, managing director of the Iranian Central Oil Fields Company said.
“Three more wells will be completed by the end of April, raising the production capacity to 17,000 bpd,” IRNA also quoted Ali Rezaei as saying.
Located along Iran’s border with Iraq, Danan was discovered in 2007 and started production in 2014. It is operated by ICOFC.
The oil extracted from the field is delivered to the Dehloran Refinery through pipeline. After being sweetened, it is pumped through a 52-kilometer pipeline to the Cheshmeh-Khosh desalination unit.
Regarding development of Dehlran Oilfield in Dehloran County, Ilam Province, Rezaei said the production of the field is expected to reach 27,000 bpd soon from the current 24,000 bpd.
Discovered in 1972, Dehleran Oilfield is located 22 kilometers southwest of Dehloran, near the Iran-Iraq border. The amount of crude oil in the field is estimated at 4,212 million barrels. Of this amount, 635 million barrels can be extracted.
Established in 1999, ICOFC is one of the major subsidiaries of the National Iranian Oil Company. It is responsible for oil and gas production from 76 reservoirs, comprising 45 gas fields and 31 oilfields.
The company is developing fields in Lorestan, Kurdestan, Kermanshah, Markazi, Qom, Ilam, East Azarbaijan, West Azarbaijan, Ardabil, Fars, Bushehr, Hormozgan and Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari provinces.
The company is also implementing a major zero-flare project, based on which the company will recover 42,475 million cubic meters of flare gases per day by 2026.
ICOFC plans to add 100 million cubic meters per day to its gas production and 100,000 million barrels to its daily oil output.
The company produced 70 billion cubic meters of gas, 20 million barrels of oil and 16 million barrels of gas condensate in the previous Iranian year [ended March 20, 2022].
Changouleh Oilfield
The expansion of Changouleh Oilfield near the Iraqi border in Ilam Province is underway and drilling operations are expected to end soon.
The development project, estimated to cost $300 million, was approved by the government’s Economic Council in June as part of a long-term plan to raise Iran’s crude output capacity. The project entails drilling at least 10 development and exploratory wells to increase the field’s output to 15,000 barrels a day.
A 150-km pipeline will also be laid to transfer the field’s natural gas to Dehloran Gas Refinery and Azar Oilfield, both in Ilam Province.
The council has approved $4.4 billion worth of investment in oil and gas development projects in border areas.
Investment in the key sectors is vital and will help NIOC meet rising domestic demand for oil derivatives and natural gas in the years to come without having to import them at exorbitant prices.
The development of oil and gas fields will secure energy supply in the future.
Oil experts believe that the economy will struggle if the oil industry, the engine of economic growth, does not get the long-awaited impetus after years of underinvestment.
