Negotiations are underway with Oman to develop the joint Hengam oilfield, Iranian Offshore Oil Company's managing director said on Monday.
"Three rounds of talks have been held with Oman Oil Company to urge them to cooperate instead of competing to develop Hengam joint oilfield," Saeed Hafezi was quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency.
According to Hafezi, cooperation with the neighboring country will definitely lead to a remarkable increase in extraction of oil and gas from the hydrocarbon reserves.
The oilfield has some complexities which do not let oil be produced constantly, yet its capacity has been predicted to reach 30,000 barrels per day.
Asked about recent negotiations between IOOC and Oman Oil Company, Hamid Rezaeian-Asl, head of Iran Shipbuilding and Offshore Industries Complex Company, said Iran is willing to develop the field and build the offshore platforms in cooperation with Oman.
"Construction of the new offshore platforms for Hengam Oilfield is underway in Bandar Abbas Port's platform construction yard," Babak Abbaspour , Hengam offshore platform's contractor, said on Monday.
"The new development plan, including three platforms, is being implemented by the domestic specialists' expertise."
According to Abbaspour, each of the new platforms has the capacity to produce and process 25,000 bpd.
Moreover, Hengam Oilfield has the lightest and the best quality crude (API 46 degree) among Iran’s oil export basket.
"A Korean company was assigned to build the offshore platforms, yet the project made less than 20% progress after two years," the official said, adding that eventually IOOC concluded an agreement with ISOICC to complete the project.
Stressing that Iran is self-sufficient in designing, constructing and installing oil and gas offshore structures, Abbaspour said plans have been made to build three offshore platforms for Hengam Oilfield in less than two years.
"Each platform weighs between 1,400 and 1,700 tons, and all the equipment and machinery have been procured. The project can accelerate if the much-needed fund is allotted on time," he said.
Iran launched the development plan for Hengam Oilfield with the aim of boosting production to 30,000bpd amid rising gas output respectively to 80 and 160 mcf/d in the next phases.
Iran’s Offshore Oil Company’s previous Managing Director Mahmoud Zirakchianzadeh had earlier said Hengam has great potentials for development and IOOC is pursuing building its gas processing plant in two phases.
Iran has 26 joint oil and gas fields with neighboring countries. Straddled along the Iran and Oman borders, Hengam Oilfield is located 70 km off Iran’s shore in the Persian Gulf waters in Hormuz Strait.
The oilfield went on stream for the first time in May 2011 with the production of 4,000 barrels of oil per day. In-place oil and gas reserves of the field are estimated at 700 million barrels and 2 trillion cubic feet respectively.
Iranian Offshore Oil Company was established early September 1980 to meet the practical and scientific objectives for the development, exploration and exploitation of crude oil and natural gas in the Persian Gulf.
