Iran Moves Forward with South Pars Gas Field Development

Iran’s Offshore Engineering and Construction Company is loading out the steel jackets constructed to be installed in the Persian Gulf, as the country moves ahead with the development of South Pars gas filed.

Loading the steel jackets on barges that will carry them more than 100 kilometers away in the sea is the first step Iranian engineers are taking as offshore development of the 20th and 21st phases of South Pars gas field enters a more serious stage.

The 3 thousand 300 ton structures will be anchored to the seabed 61 meters deep to support decks large enough to provide the necessary space for drilling, production facilities and crew quarters.

This is the result of months of hard work and more than 11 years of experience of the engineers at Iran’s Offshore Engineering and Construction Company – now in charge of 5 development projects in south Pars Gas field. Each project is expected to be completed within 35 months.

Located in the Persian Gulf – South Pars is the world’s largest gas field. It holds an estimated 51 trillion cubic meters natural gas and is shared between Iran and Qatar. Qatar began production from the field in 1989 and rapidly expanded its development projects, production and export. Based on the current plans, LNG production may reach 650 million cubic meters this year.

Iran on the other hand began production in 2002. The development projects are planned to be carried out in 27 phases with Iranian firms mostly in charge. Each of the steel jackets cost 20 to 25 million dollars to build. The decks cost around 100 to 120 million dollars. But these numbers double and triple when foreign firms are involved. Its also important the projects have created over 4000 jobs.

Most of the structures required for the development projects are built by Iran’s Offshore Engineering and Construction Company here in the southern port city of Khormashar. The company has already installed the steel jackets for phases 12 and 19 — according to plan the deck for phase 19 will be installed in six months.

In the meantime, the decks and platforms of the 4 and a half billion dollar development project of phases 20 and 21 are under construction. Offshore drilling will begin in five months when the platform is ready. But first these steel jackets need to be loaded out.

It will take the jackets 20 days to get to south Pars gas field and to be installed in order to complete phase 20 of the project.

[mappress]
LNG World News Staff, December 17, 2012