NISOC to Develop 27 Oil Reservoirs

The National Iranian South Oil Company has devised plans to expand 27 hydrocarbon reservoirs in the oil-rich Khuzestan Province by raising $4.3 billion in finances, the planning manager of NISOC said.

"Around $1.7 billion will be allotted to drilling operations and the rest will be spent on refining and petrochemical construction plans," Abdollah Mousavi added, saying that the project requires the government's approval, the National Iranian Oil Company's news portal said on Monday.

NISOC is making concerted efforts to compensate for the natural plunge in the country's oil output from old fields and increase production level by 341,000 barrels per day in the next two years.

"Plans call for drilling 240 wells and NISOC invites all domestic and foreign investors, universities and research centers to play an active role in ventures that will be carried out under engineering, procurement and construction, as well as engineering, procurement, construction and financing contracts," he added.

Pointing to the ideal investment opportunities, Mousavi said NISOC has formulated plans to implement 124 offshore and onshore ventures of different scales in Khuzestan Province with abundant supplies of hydrocarbon reserves.

"The projects are aimed at helping the economy of the province thrive," he said, adding that the enterprise will create much-needed jobs in the region.

  Shadegan Oilfield

According to Bijan Alipour, the NISOC chief executive officer, the first contract to develop one of NISOC's oilfields will be signed for Shadegan Oilfield by March 2018.

"The contract will be within the framework of NISOC's contractual model that conforms to the outlines of IPC (Iran Petroleum Contract)," Alipour added, noting that the state-owned company is scrutinizing proposals to develop four major oilfields, including the onshore Rag Sefid, Karanj and Parsi fields.

Asked about cooperation with domestic firms, the official noted that Pasargad Energy Company, Persia Oil and Gas Industry Development Company, Tenco and MAPNA Group are among domestic companies that have signed agreements with NISOC and agreed to submit the result of their technical studies within six months.

"International energy groups, namely Schlumberger Ltd, the world's leading oilfield services provider, Pergas Consortium, Russia's oil company Tatneft and Zarubezhneft, a Moscow-based oil enterprise, are also studying the oilfields," Alipour said, noting that different committees are analyzing and comparing some of the master plans economically, technically and executively.

NISOC, the largest subsidiary of Iran's state oil company, is assigned with the development of oilfields in Khuzestan with a total of nine reservoirs, based on the company's customized IPC framework.

Referring to plans to raise the recovery rate of fields operated by NISOC by as much as 20%, the official said, "The company operates 66 oil reservoirs with 230 billion barrels of in-place crude while gas injection to boost recovery is being carried out on almost 50% of them."

Alipour noted that of the 66 reservoirs, which account for two-thirds of Iran’s in-place oil reserves, 18 are in the second half of their life cycle.