Reuters reports that the state-run Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corp (JOGMEC) said on Thursday it expects to provide about 16.3 billion yen ($198 million) of capital in 2011-2012 to Iraq’s Gharaf [Gharraf, Garraf] oilfield development project.

In return, JOGMEC said it would take a stake of less than 50 percent in Japan Petroleum Exploration’s (Japex) wholly owned subsidiary that is taking part in the project.

Malaysia’s state oil firm Petronas holds 45 percent of the oilfield development and production service project, Japex 30 percent, and Iraq 25 percent.

The consortium, which expects to invest up to $8 billion, expects oil production to start in 2012 at 50,000 barrels per day, rising to 230,000 bpd of plateau output from 2016.

In a statement, JOGMEC said: “It is expected that this project will contribute to strengthen and deepen a relationship with Iraq, as well as reinforce Japan’s energy security”.

(Sources: Reuters, JOGMEC)

Petronas, the Malaysian state oil firm, has agreed to train 60 Iraqi oil engineers to help it develop the Gharaf oilfield.

The engineers will attend an intensive 6-month course in Malaysia and will then be sent back home to supervise the company’s operations, according to a report from Azzaman.

Petronas and Japan Petroleum Exploration Co (Japex) won the 20-year service contract to develop the 900-million barrel field. They have agreed to invest about $7 billion.

Petronas has a 60 percent stake in the venture, and Japex the rest.

Petronas and Japex will get $1.49 per barrel from Gharaf the development of which could churn out 230,000 barrels a day.

Iraq’s oil ministry announced on Friday that it would begin drilling for oil in the Gharraf oil fields by the end of the year.

(Source: Azzaman)

Iraq’s oil ministry announced on Friday that it would begin drilling for oil in the southern Gharraf oil fields by the end of the year.

Officials said initial production levels of 50,000 barrels per day from eight oil wells are expected.

Malaysia’s state-owned oil company Petronas and the Japan Petroleum Exploration Company (Japex) signed a deal with the Iraqi government late last year to develop the Gharraf oil fields.

The deal envisages 20 oil wells with an estimated daily output of 230,000 barrels over 20 years.

Iraq’s state oil company holds a minority share in the partnership.

Petronas has also just announced that it will train 60 Iraqi engineers in Malaysia to work on the Gharraf project.

(Sources: Deutsche Presse-Agentur, Rigzone, Azzaman)

Iraq's South Oil Company, working with the IOCs, has set quarterly
production targets for the country's southern oilfields for 2011,
according to documents obtained by Reuters.

Production is targeted reach an average of nearly 2.3m bpd by Q4 2011.

 Oilfields            Q1          Q2          Q3          Q4

 Rumaila           1,175,000   1,201,000   1,226,000   1,250,000

 West Qurna 1        260,000     270,000     285,000     300,000

 Majnoon              70,000      80,000      90,000     100,000

 Zubair              280,000     310,000     340,000     360,000

 Gharaf                  -           -           -        35,000

 Nahr Bin Umar        45,000      50,000      60,000      70,000

 Ratawi               10,000      14,000      18,000      25,000

 Luhais               60,000      70,000      80,000      85,000

 Tuba                 10,000      15,000      20,000      30,000

 Nassiriya            15,000      20,000      30,000      30,000

TOTAL              1,925,000   2,030,000   2,149,000   2,285,000

(Source: Reuters)

quarterly 2011 production targets for
Iraq's southern oilfields

ExxonMobil (XOM.N) and its partner Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) have not been affected by a delay in the formation of Iraq’s new government, and work on their West Qurna Phase One project is moving ahead, an Exxon executive said on Monday.

Exxon expects to tender later this year to drill new wells in the supergiant field and will award contracts for well services within four weeks, which could include some work-over, said ExxonMobil Iraq Vice President James Adams, according to a report from Reuters.

“Right now things seem to be going ahead fairly well,” Adams told Reuters on the sidelines a conference in Baghdad between oil company executives and the Iraqi Oil Ministry.

Iraq held a general election in March that produced no outright winner and as yet no new government.

“No, it’s not affecting us,” Adams said.

The Exxon-Shell contract to develop the 8.7-billion-barrel West Qurna Phase One project was one of series Iraq has signed with international oil companies (IOCs) to develop its reserves.

Adams said Exxon was taking the lead among the international oil companies in coordinating initial studies into a water injection scheme that could help raise extraction rates at West Qurna Phase One, Majnoon, Zubair, Rumaila, Gharaf, and Halfaya oilfields.

“We are taking the lead in terms of coordinating and undertaking the initial studies, because you don’t want each field or each IOC to be doing their own design,” he said.

He said the aim would be to produce 10-15 million bpd of water and while the project was in the very early stages of concept evaluation, it would definitely use seawater.

He said it would cost billions of dollars and that such projects typically took at least three years to complete.

“The timeline right now is undetermined but the timeline will be very fast,” he said.

(Source: Reuters)

Related articles:

• International Oil Symposium in Baghdad
• West Qurna 1 to See 8 New Wells
• ExxonMobil to use water injection to enhance southern Iraqi oil ouput