Working relations will expand between Iran's North Drilling Company and Oman’s Ministry of Oil and Gas regarding investment by Omani companies in the upstream energy sectors and cooperation in drilling and services, said the managing director of NDC, a subsidiary of the National Iranian Oil Company.
According to the NDC news portal, Hamidreza Golpayegani met the director of Oman’s Oil and Gas Ministry’s Marketing Department, Ali Abdullah Al-Riyami, on Monday in Muscat.
The two sides discussed enhancing collaboration in drilling technology transfer and sharing know-how in the crucial sector.
Golpayegani expressed NDC’s readiness for providing technical support and consultation, and sharing its offshore and onshore drilling experience with international players in the oil and gas sector.
NDC has taken effective steps to secure its footprint in foreign markets. Ehsanollah Ghasemi, NDC’s director for international marketing and cooperation, was quoted as saying in June that the company can cooperate with the Caspian Sea littoral states, such as Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan, in drilling ventures.
He said NDC has the technology to carry out drilling in deep waters and has a regional record for drilling operations at a depth of more than 700 meters. NDC has emerged as one of the largest drilling companies in Southwest Asia.
> Gas Pipeline
Iran and Oman have expanded economic relations in recent years thanks to the extended two-way banking cooperation.
According to the National Iranian Gas Export Company, after over a decade of discussions, the Iran-Oman gas pipeline was given the green light last February and a joint committee was formed in July to finalize the deal.
Plans are in place to extend pipeline infrastructure by 200 kilometers to supply gas from the port city of Asalouyeh in the Persian Gulf to Kuh Mobarak in Hormozgan Province off the Sea of Oman.
From there, a subsea pipeline will be laid to Oman's Sohar Port. About 15% of the natural gas that will be delivered is expected to be converted into liquefied natural gas in that Arab state and will be marketed by Iran. The rest will be sold to regional and international markets.
The energy and engineering project will cost an estimated $1.2 billion and supply 28 million cubic meters per day of natural gas to Oman for 15 years. The two sides hope deliveries will begin by 2020.
> No Change in Plans
The Omani minister said Monday that despite the looming US sanctions, construction work on the gas pipeline exporting gas from Iran to his country will continue.
US President Donald Trump said in May he was getting out of the Iran nuclear deal and would reimpose sanctions on Iranian petroleum and petrochemical products in November.
The Omani minister said that tender documents for the project were sent to interested companies.
Iran produces more than 800 million cubic meters of gas per day, but exports a small amount -- hardly 40 mcm/d -- to Turkey and Iraq.
