Plans are underway to accelerate the development of Phase 11 of South Pars gas field in the Persian Gulf in the near future, managing director of Pars Oil and Gas Company (POGC) said, Shana news agency reported on Monday.
Ali Akbar Shabanpour said contractors will be invited to participate in tenders to undertake two major development plans for Phase 11 - namely 11A and 11B.
The first plan includes drilling operations as well as establishing a steel jacket, building an offshore platform and laying a submarine pipeline. Steel jacket is a vertical framework made of steel members, and is usually piled into the seabed. Once the facilities of the first plan are operational, natural gas from Phase 11 will be delivered to refineries at phases 6-8.
Shabanpour said 11B development plan is similar in terms of scope and operations to 11B, while it calls for gas supply to Phase 12 refining units. Development of Phase 11 facilities at the offshore sector is to be carried out ahead of its onshore areas to use the untapped potential of phases 6, 7, 8 and 12 refineries, according to the official.
South Pars is the world’s largest gas field, shared between Iran and Qatar, covering an area of 3,700 square kilometers of Iran’s territorial waters in the Persian Gulf. It adjoins Qatar’s North Field, which measures 6,000 square kilometers.
The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) and France’s Total S.A. struck a deal in 2000 to develop Phase 11 upstream sector and build liquefied natural gas (LNG) production unit with 10 million ton per year capacity. However, the French energy giant -- failing in fulfilling its commitments and highlighting oil and trade sanctions imposed on Iran as a hurdle -- was ultimately sacked from the project after eight years.
The Chinese then signed a reported $4 billion contract in 2009, only for the NIOC to revoke the deal three years later due to incompetence and procrastination of the Chinese contractors to stand up to their own end of the bargain.
