Plans have been made to launch South Pars phases 17 and 18 in the second half of the current Iranian year (started March 21).
Ali Akbar Shabanpour, managing director of Pars Oil and Gas Company, made the statement while visiting the Iran Shipbuilding and Offshore Industries Complex Company's fabrication yard to check the development process of section B offshore platform of phases 17 and 18, Shana reported.
Stressing that the two incomplete platforms will be ready to go on stream as planned, Shabanpour added that the installation of the two mega structures will facilitate natural gas production and extraction from the phases' reservoirs.
"Phases 17 and 18 section B drilling operations are underway," he said, noting that construction of offshore structures is continuing as planned and the national project is expected to become operational on time unless financial constraints impede its progress.
"The phases are designed to produce 50 million cubic meters of gas per day. So far, 22 wells have been drilled in the offshore sector of the two phases to deliver natural gas to onshore processing facilities through a 220-kilometer pipeline," he said.
Hassan Bouyeri, director of South Pars phases 17 and 18, said the two phases have made more than 90% physical progress and all four refining units are now operational, producing close to 30 mcm per day of natural gas.
Iran is pressing ahead with plans to raise gas production capacity, as it prepares for the full launch of two more phases of South Pars Gas Field later this year.
According to Ali Mohammad Ahmadi, the operator of South Pars comprehensive sustainable development plan, the initiative requires $6.5 billion in investment to be completed in five years.
“The project encompasses a wide range of issues, including the study to minimize the contamination level of refineries, petrochemical complexes and other production units with the aim of producing and consuming clean energy," he said.
Ahmadi stressed that converting refineries' flare gas into different forms of energy to be used locally is among other goals of the project.
“Industrial wastewater collection and treatment for agricultural purposes to help provide much-needed facilities for the residents of Asalouyeh, southern Iran, also top the priority list. Moreover, strategies to provide potable water for the local people and preventing contaminants from penetrating into the sea will also be studied," he said.
According to the official, the refineries in phases 2 and 3 are among the first ones to be altered to use natural gas during the next two years.
Pointing to the fact that this is the first time such a mega project has been planned in Iran, Ahmadi said, "Plans call for the maximum use of domestic experts and as soon as the initiative is undertaken, the state-of-the-art technology can be applied to develop similar plans at home and abroad." 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 around 6,000 square kilometers.
