Huge gas reserve explored in southern Iran

TEHRAN (PIN) – Drilling operations of an exploration well resulted in discovery of a huge gas

reserve in the vicinity of Haftkal, a town northeast of Khuzestan Province, southern Iran.
According to the news headquarters of the 5th Drilling Industry Exposition, the reserve is 28km long and 5km wide. The onshore operations manager of National Iranian Drilling Company (NIDC) said a well with a 2,500 meter depth had been drilled in the region in the pre-revolution era, but the well, due to some problems and rigidity of layers, had been deserted.

Mehran Makvandi added the Fat’h Derrick 65 was installed and helped the drilling depth rise from the previous 700 to 4,380 meters. The NIDC official said the Exploration Department of National Iranian Oil Company was conducting complementary studies on the gas deposit and possible in situ oil of the field. He said two more wells would be drilled in the near future in an attempt to get further data about the reserve, adding the NIOC would offer its master development plan (MDP) through data gathered from the three wells. “This is the second reserve in Khuzestan Province that has been discovered with the help of Fat’h Derrick,” said Makvandi, adding Paranj filed had been already explored in the vicinity of Kerenj and Parsi fields in Aghajari. Director of NIOC’s Exploration Department said Paranj oilfield is located between Kerenj and Parsi fields.

“After 3-D seismological studies were carried out on Kerenj and Parsi fields and the resultant data was explained, the Exploration Dept. reached the conclusion that the field can be appraised as an independent exploration goal,” Mahmud Mohaddes added. He said explorative drilling on Asmari horizon of Paranj field started in December 2005 and finished in four months, adding the field’s reserves were announced at 600 million to one billion barrels of crude oil in April 2006. The official added since Paranj field was close to installations related to Parsi and Kerenj fields, production from the field started rapidly. “Current production by Paranj field is about 7,000 barrels per day and its output can be increased to 40,000-50,000 barrels per day.”

Iran-Japan trade reaches dlrs 14 billion

Iran-Japan-Trade Trade between Iran and Japan rose up to dlrs 14 billion in 2007, Japanese Finance Ministry reported.

Trade between the two countries had exceeded dlrs 12 billion in 2006 and it enjoyed a significant growth in 2007, IRNA said quoting Japanese Finance Ministry.

Iran's share of the total daily imports of crude oil to Japan had a 0.64 percent rise in 2007 compared with that of 2006.

According to the statistics, Iran has been the third rank supplier of crude oil to Japan.
Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are the first and second countries exporting oil to Japan respectively.

The average volume of daily crude oil export to Japan has enjoyed 16,000 barrels increase in 2007 compared with 2006.

IRNA reporter in Tokyo said that in light of the Iran-Japan excellent political and economic ties, Japan can trust Iran as major crude oil supplier for its energy security would it play more active role in Iranian oil fields.

Iran pumping oil from Azadegan

Iran has begun oil production from Azadegan, one of the world's largest onshore oil fields, a senior Iranian Oil Ministry official says. "Currently, 20,000 barrels of light and heavy oils are being produced per day from the field," Seifollah Jashnsaz, managing director of the National Iranian South Oil Company, stated. Located 80 km west of the southern Iranian city of Ahvaz in oil-rich Khuzestan province, Azadegan has proven oil reserves of 33 billion barrels and the capacity is forecast to increase to 40 billion barrels. The field is being developed by Petroiran Development Company, a subsidiary of the National Iranian Oil Company after Iran's partnership with Japanese firm Inpex collapsed in 2006. Iran, the world's fourth oil producer, aims to increase its output from the current over four million barrels per day (bpd) to 5.6 million bpd in seven years.

Oil bourse opens in Iran's Kish Island

Iran's oil bourse will pave the way for the country's more active presence in international crude transactions, oil minister says. Although Iran's oil resources were discovered more than a hundred years ago, its oil sector has so far played only a minor role in international oil markets, IRNA reported Gholam-Hossein Nozari as saying. Speaking at the opening ceremony of Iran's oil and petrochemical bourse in Kish Island, Nozari pointed out that it was important for Iran to play a more active role in oil and petrochemical transactions in international markets. "All major currencies of the world will be used in transactions in Iran's oil bourse," he added.

He pointed out that Iran has produced a total of some 63 billion barrels of crude oil over the past hundred years. He put the volume of natural gas produced in the same period at about 3 trillion cubic meters, noting that while part of it was being used for domestic consumption, a significant part is being converted into petrochemical products.

Referring to potential transactions in oil products through the oil bourse, the Oil Minister said, “Our annual petrochemical output currently stands at 20 million tons, which is expected to reach 23 million tons by the end of the current Iranian calendar year, with good prospects of increasing it to some 45 million tons by the end of next year.”

Iran's oil and petrochemical bourse officially started operation in Kish Island on the Persian Gulf following inauguration speeches given by Nozari and Iran's Minister of Financial an Economic Affair, Davoud Danesh Ja'fari.