Tehran, Iran, Aug. 19
By Milad Fashtami - Trend:
Iranian Oil Minister Bijian Namdar Zanganeh said that the country's giant South Pars gas field will fully become operational by the end of the Iranian calendar year of 1396 (to end March 20, 2018).
"The first priority of the oil ministry is to develop phases 12, 15, 16, 17, and 18 of South Pars," Zanganeh said, Iran's Mehr News Agency reported on August 19.
"Once the mentioned phases come on stream, the development of other phases will be started," he explained.
Iranian oil minister went on to note that Iran will be able to produce 40,000 barrels of gas condensates from each phase of the South Pars gas field.
"By launching four phases of the field, Iran will annually earn $5 billion by producing gas condensates," he said. "Iran's total gas production will reach 200 million cubic meters per day in the next two years."
"By increasing Iran's total gas output especially from joint fields, the country's liquid fuel consumption in the industrial units and power plants will be reduced," Zanganeh explained.
Iran's largest gas field is South Pars, a non-associated gas field located offshore in the middle of the Persian Gulf. South Pars is a portion of a larger gas structure that straddles the territorial water borders of Iran and Qatar. It is called the North field in Qatar.
South Pars reserves account for roughly 40% of Iran's total gas reserves, and the field is also estimated to hold 17 million barrels of condensate in place.
Iran holds 17% of the world's proved natural gas reserves and more than one-third of OPEC's reserves. Iran has a high success rate of natural gas exploration, in terms of wildcat drilling, which is estimated at 79% compared to the world average success rate of 30% to 35%, according to FGE.