Page 12 - MEOG Week 38 2021

MEOG PROJECTS & COMPANIES MEOG

PDO kicks off Yibal Khuff production

OMAN STATE-BACKED Petroleum Development capital Muscat in PDO’s 900,000-square km
Oman (PDO) this week announced that it had Block 6 concession. Block 6 has an oil produc-
kicked off operations at its Yibal Khuff project, tion capacity of around 650,000 bpd and is home
six years after the contract for the development to more than 75% of the Sultanate’s remaining
was awarded. oil reserves.
The news follows the June announcement by Yibal Khuff’s start-up had originally been
UK-based contractor Petrofac that sweet hydro- anticipated in 2020 but was pushed back during
carbons had begun flowing into the central pro- 2019.
cessing facility (CPF) at the integrated sour gas The estimated $2.9bn scheme will tap
and oil project south-west of Muscat. reserves estimated at 327mn barrels of oil equiv-
The first wells began feeding sour crude to alent (boe) in the Khuff and Sudair reservoirs to
the CPF earlier in September and PDO said this increase capacity at Yibal – the sultanate’s oldest
week that flows are already running into Oman’s and largest field – through the use of EOR in the
Main Oil Line. The company noted that the pro- sour Khuff reservoir.
ject’s complexity is driven by the ultra-high sour Petrofac’s large-scale involvement in PDO’s
oil and gas content. EOR programme dates back to 2005 and the
The CPF will continue to proceed towards full award of the EPC contract for the second phase
capacity of 20,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude of PDO’s first such project at Rabab-Harweel.
and 5mn cubic metres per day of associated gas, PDO is 60% state-owned, with the remainder
with the latter to be used in power generation held by Royal Dutch Shell (34%), Total (4%) and
and for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Flows are Thailand’s PTT E&P (2%). Its share in Block 6
higher than the previously envisaged 10,000 bpd has now been transferred to the newly formed
of oil and 5 mcm per day of gas. Energy Development Oman (EDO).
Petrofac was awarded an engineering, pro- In August, EDO raised $2.5bn worth of debt
curement and construction management to cover the state’s funding requirements relating
(EPCM) contract by PDO in 2015. The facility is to Block 6, which are estimated to cost Muscat
located around 350 km south-west of the Omani $5-6bn per year.™

P12 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 38 22•September•2021