Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 19/ Trend F.Milad/
The development of the largest part of the South Pars gas field, phase 12, is 68 per cent complete, Shana news agency reported.
Phase 12 has the capacity for producing three billion cubic feet of gas per year and is projected to come on stream by October 2012, the report added.
Seven phases of the South Pars gas field will certainly come on stream and start early production in the next calendar year which starts on March 20, the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) managing director said in December 2011.
Phase 12 (equivalent to three phases), and phases 15, 16, 17, and 18 development plans have progressed by around 60 per cent, NIOC head Ahmad Qalebani told Mehr news agency.
Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi has ordered all the contractors of the South Pars gas field development projects to work round the clock in three shifts to complete development of all phases, especially 12, 15, 16, 17 and 18.
Iran has attached priority to boosting gas production capacity from its joint oilfields with Qatar and Saudi Arabia, Mr Qasemi said, according to IRNA news agency.
The South Pars gas field is shared by Iran and Qatar. The Iranian share which is divided into 29 phases, has about 14 trillion cubic metres of gas, or about eight per cent of the total world reserves and more than 18 billion barrels of liquefied natural gas resources.
Iran sits on the world's second largest natural gas reserves after Russia.