First Phase of Salman Gas Field Ready

TEHRAN (SHANA) – Petroiran Development Company managing director has announced that the first phase of Salman gas field production with a capacity of 300 million cubic feet per day has been implemented and predicted that this total would increase to 700 million cm/d.

 Seyyed Ali Beheshtian also went on to say that this was the preliminary study stage of the project, which details would soon be announced. The execution and running of the first unit of the KPP gas production platform with a capacity of 300 million cm/d of gas from the field was announced by Petroiran Development Company managing director who also said that the second and third units of the platform would become active in the next few days to increase gas production to 500 million cm/d.

Beheshtian concluded: "In the first stage the construction of a refinery at Assaluyeh was proposed, where the gas from  Salman field would be directly transferred to it and processed but the gas transfer issue was changed in due course.

     Petroiran Attending 14th International Oil, Gas and Petrochemicals Exhibition

Petroiran Development Company (PEDCO) is attending 14th International Oil, Gas and Petrochemicals Exhibition which is going to be held in Tehran's International Trade Fair from 2nd Ordibehesht 1388 till 5th Ordibehesht  1388, 22nd April 2009 till 25th April 2009.

 The company will be presented in hall No. 15, belonging to National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC).

       Inpex May Keep 10 Percent Share in Azadegan

Inpex Holding Inc. is in talks with the Iranian National Oil Company to regain its 10% share in the development of Iran's Azadegan oilfield.

Directors of Inpex apparently are in Iran to discuss the issue of regaining their 10 percent share in the development of Iran's huge Azadegan oilfield with the officials of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), Fars New Agency reported.

Earlier, Iran decided to cancel the Inpex contract because of the company's neglect to perform its obligations.

Under heavy US pressures to isolate Iran for its uranium enrichment activities, which Iran says are being carried out for peaceful purposes, the government-backed Inpex was forced to exit the development of the project and limit itself to 10 percent financing.

The Azadegan oilfield, located in southwestern Iran, near the border with Iraq, was estimated to contain 33 billion barrels of oil but after further discovery operations a new layer of 2.2 billon barrels was added to its estimated reserves. Inpex originally had a 75% stake in the $2 billion development project, with the state-owned National Iranian Oil Co. holding the remaining 25%.

The field is expected to pump 150,000 barrels a day of crude by mid-2008, and 260,000 barrel per day by early 2012.
Construction at the Azadegan field was not easy. The area, about 500 miles southwest of Tehran, lies in a former battle zone of the Iran-Iraq war and is said to be rife with unexploded landmines, which are still being cleared.

Iran has spent more than $18 million for clearing mines so far.

Iran recently had announced it would develop Azadegan as the first major field to be developed solely by Iranian companies.