“Output capacity has approached 700 million cubic meters. In 2010 it was 280 mcm/d,” Mohammad Meshkinfam was quoted as saying by the Oil Ministry news website.
POGC, a subsidiary of the National Iranian Oil Company, oversees developments of the major gas field. South Pares is divided into 24 phases, all of which except Phase 11 are operational.
“The mega project included 39 offshore decks, of which 37 are in place.” Phase 11, which is the last phase of South Pars Gas Field, is due to be developed in two integrated and consecutive stages. Stage one will consist of drilling 30 wells plus fabrication and erection of two production platforms. Each stage will contain 15 wells and produce 56 million cubic meters of gas per day plus 75,000 barrels of gas condensate. 13 onshore processing units, 12 are up and running. Close to 3,000 kilometers of subsea pipeline have been laid to link the offshore facilities to onshore processing trains.
“Eight SP phases (13, 14, 15, 16, 19 and 22-24) came on stream in the past ten years.”
Referring to Phase 11, he said the platform jacket for the phase is ready in Qeshm Island and is planned to be installed soon.
“Spread of the respiratory illness (Covid-19) has delayed work.”
Phase 11, which is the last phase of South Pars Gas Field, is due to be developed in two integrated and consecutive stages. Stage one will consist of drilling 30 wells plus fabrication and erection of two production platforms. Each stage will contain 15 wells and produce 56 million cubic meters of gas per day plus 75,000 barrels of gas condensate.
Priorities
Highlighting the importance of the shared field, he noted that SP accounts for 40% of the feedstock needed to produce gasoline in Iran.
Gasoline output currently is 115 million liters per day, of which 50 million liters is produced in the Persian Gulf Star Refinery in the southern province of Hormozgan Province. An estimated 400,000 barrels per day of gas condensate is supplied to the complex from the giant field as feedstock.
Natural gas comprises 65% of Iran’s energy mix and is supposed to increase by 10% in two decades.
POCG’s chief went on to say that developing other fields in the Persian Gulf namely Kish, and increasing pressure in more than 336 offshore wells in SP are priorities.
“Despite peak production in the field, pressure reduction has emerged gradually. Installation of offshore compressor stations is the only long-term option to control gas pressure reduction."
Contrary to popular belief, the field will not be able to produce 700 mcm of gas per day (the current output) forever and this clean resource should be used as prudently as possible, he said. Close to 650 mcm of gas is consumed domestically with the balance exported to Iraq and Turkey.
Referring to past short-term policies to postpone pressure reduction, he said his company has started to acidize offshore wells and this would delay the process by two years.
"By late 2021, pressure will fall to decline by 28 mcm per year unless advanced platforms and compressors are installed.”
Pressure will fall come what may. However, other gas fields in the Persian Gulf including Kish, Ferdowsi and Golshan may help compensate the reduction (but not for long), he said.
Reservoir pressure in SP was higher when the first contract for development of the field was signed years ago, he recalled.
“Qatar's excessive gas extraction from the field has reduced the pressure to a great extent further lowering of pressure will affect production from the operating platforms in the near future.”
SP, which Iran shares with Qatar, covers an area of 9,700 square kilometers, 3,700 square kilometers of which (South Pars) is in Iran’s territorial waters and the rest (North Dome) is in Qatari waters. The field is estimated to contain large deposits of natural gas, accounting for almost 8% of the world’s known reserves, and approximately18 billion barrels of condensates.