Azerbaijan, Baku, July 11/ Trend, N. Umid /
The project to increase Hengam oilfield production from 16,000 to 30,000 barrels per day was inaugurated by Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, IRINN TV channel reported on July 11.
Iran says it would increase oil output capacity from this field to 45,000 barrel per day until March 2014.
The Hengam oilfield development plan is also projected to produce 80 million cubic feet of natural gas per day.
The field is estimated to hold 700 million barrels of crude oil and two trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
Some $450 million had been invested in the first phase of developing the Hengam oilfield which has raised up to $720 million in total so far.
OPEC released the report on July 10, saying Iran's oil output in June was 2.669 mbpb.
The National Iranian Offshore Oilfields Company managing director Mahmoud Zirakchianzadeh said that at present, some 22,000 barrels per day of oil is extracted by Iran from the field.
In April 2012, Zirakchianzadeh said that Iran had launched projects to develop four oilfields located in the Persian Gulf and raise the total output by 100,000 bpd in the current calendar year.
"Some $9 billion worth of contracts were signed last year to develop the Salman, Lavan and Forouz B fields," Zirakchianzadeh told the Mehr news agency.
This year, boosting output at the Reshadat, Forouzan, Hengam and Hendijan fields by 100,000 bpd has been planned, he added.
Iran also announced it will implement 11 plans by the Iranian calendar month of Mordad 1392 (July 22-August 22, 2013) with the goal of boosting oil production by 175,000 barrels per day (bpd).
The plans are related to the first phase of the development plans of the Yadavaran, Sarvestan, Saadatabad, Hengam, Forouzan, Reshadat, Aban, and Paydar oilfields according to a report published by the National Iranian Oil Company on August 25.
Once all the phases of the development plans are implemented, output will be increased by 500,000 bpd.
Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi has said the country's oil output is projected to increase by 1.5 million bpd by 2016.