University, Kupal field to Sharif University of Technology, Mansouri field to the University of Shiraz, Gachsaran field to Petroleum University of Technology and Bibi Hakimieh field to the Research Institute of Enhanced Recovery. By March 2015, phase 12 of South Pars came online amid unjust sanctions against Iran. SP12 is the largest phase of South Pars.
2015, South Pars Gas, Aban & Salman Oil Up
The process of development of joint fields continued into 2015. Gas recovery started from SP18 platform in June 2015, while Platform 17A was launched in November that year to allow gas production from SP17 at a rate of 10 mcm/d. Gas recovery started from SP19 in March 2016 at the rate of 500 mcf/d. SP15 and SP16 also came online in January 2016.
Aban and Salman shared oil fields saw their output increase in 2015. In parallel with that, two wells at Aban field became operational to raise oil production form this field. Salman field, where three drilling rigs were operating, experienced more than 10,000 b/d output. Gas injection into the wells of this field was instrumental in boosting the rate of recovery and increasing oil production from Aban.
East Oil and Gas Production Company announced that the Gonbadli shared gas field had for the first time met its production target in 2014 and 2015.
The year 2015 was a turning point in building platforms at the Forouzan oil field by the Iranian Offshore Engineering and Construction Company (IOEC). In that year, construction of platforms had more than 34% progress.
The government also released a directive in November 2015, laying out general conditions as well as the structure and model of upstream oil and gas contracts. In December 2015, Tehran hosted a conference to present the most significant opportunities for investment in Iran’s upstream oil sector.
Following that, trial production from Yadavaran and North Azadegan oil fields started.
2016, 3 West Karoun Oil Projects Started Up
Thanks to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in 2016 Iran’s petroleum industry witnessed growth in the trend of international interactions. Iran’s oil exports kept rising in that year, while numerous memorandums of understanding were signed between NIOC and domestic and foreign firms to study oil and gas fields across Iran. Some of these memorandums pertained to the jointly-owned oil fields: Aban, West Paydar, Dehloran, Azadegan, Yaran and Naftshahr. Furthermore, based on plans, arrangements for the establishment of qualified and eligible Iranian E&P companies were made, leading to the release of the first list of Iranian E&P companies in 2016.
In 2016, West Paydar saw its output increase to 30,000 b/d from 20,000 b/d in 2012. Iranian engineers also managed for the first time to embark on hydraulic fracturing in Well No. 11 of the Azar oil field. The first phase of early production from this joint field began in March 2017 at a rate of 15,000 b/d.
The post-JCPOA release of equipment purchased for South Pars largely contributed to an accelerated development of this joint field. In June 2016, Platform 19C with a recovery capacity of 500 mcf/d came online. In November that year, the 500 mcf/d Platform 18B became operational. In December 2016, the platform of SP21 started producing 28 mcm/d while the 500mcf/d Platform 17B registered a new record in March 2017. Concurrently with the anniversary of nationalization of the Iran's petroleum industry, gas production started from SP20. Meanwhile, the trial-run commissioning of the oil layer of South Pars started, as well. In February 2017, the first Middle East processing vessel had entered Iran’s territorial waters for the development of the South Pars Oil Layer. However, the most significant oil event in 2016 was the official startup of three oil development projects in West Karoun: development Phase 1 of the Yadavaran oil field with a production capacity of 85,000 b/d, development Phase 1 of the North Azadegan field with a production capacity of 75,000 b/d and development of the North Yaran field with a production capacity of 30,000 b/d. These three projects along with South Azadegan brought total output from the West Karoun fields to 270,000 b/d in 2016, up from 70,000 in 2013.
2017, Joint Fields Lift Output
In March 2017, SP17, SP18, SP19, SP20 and SP21 came online, adding 150 mcm/d to South Pars’ output. Iran brought its recovery from South Pars to the same level of Qatar’s production. Meantime, the South Pars Oil Layer started production at the rate of 35,000 b/d. Petroleum Engineering and Development Company (PEDEC) announced that the South Azadegan output had surpassed 80,000 b/d. In spring 2017, the oil production capacity at the Azar field soared past 30,000 b/d. In autumn 2017, the South Yaran field reached production stage. Six wells in this field allowed the recovery of 10,000 b/d of oil. In November 2017, the jacket of Platform 18F at the Forouzan field was installed and the oil platform control system of this joint field was launched based on one of the most advanced systems currently used in the oil and gas industry. The Hengam gas processing complex also became operational with a processing capacity of 80 mcf/d of gas.
In 2017, many Iranian and foreign companies that had signed MOUs with NIOC to study oil and gas fields in Iran presented their reports. For instance, Royal Dutch Shell had conducted feasibility studies on Yadavaran and Azadegan fields. In July 2017, NIOC signed an agreement with a consortium of France’s Total, China’s CNPCI and Iran’s Petropars for the development of SP11. In the final days of the Iranian calendar year 1396( started in March 2017), an agreement was signed between NIOC and a consortium of Russia’s Zarubezhneft and Dana Energy for the development of Aban and West Paydar, and another one between NIOC and Pasargad Energy Development Company for the development of the Sepehr and Jofair fields. In the calendar year 1396 (started in March 2017), NIOC decided upon the case of SP11, Aban and West Paydar – all of them shared fields.
2018, 10 Oil Enhancement Deals Signed
Iran’s petroleum industry was under sanctions in 2018; however, development projects never came to a halt. In early 2018, Iran and Azerbaijan signed agreements for joint activities in the Caspian Sea exploration blocks.
NIOC also signed 10 agreements with Iranian companies as part of its plan to hire domestic firms in oil production projects. One of these agreements pertains to Naftshahr jointly-owned oil field.
In 2018, oil production rate in South Yaran grew. Plans were also developed to install downhole pumps in the North Yaran field with a view to raising output. Capacity building for production continued in South Azadegan.
Platform 14A came online in May 2018, and then sour gas production from the first platform of SP14 commenced. In November 2018, as the operation of the satellite platform 14C ended in the Persian Gulf, sour gas recovery from the second platform of SP14 began.
Two months later, the first platform for the SP 22-24 development projects was launched with a recovery capacity of 14.2 mcm/d.
The refineries of SP 13 and SP 22-24 came online for $11 billion in the final days of the calendar year 1397.
2019, Balal Development Awarded to Iran Firm
During the first three quarters of the Iranian calendar year 1398, despite all sanctions and restrictions, Iran’s petroleum industry focused on the development of South Pars and West Karoun fields.
So far in the new calendar year, the third production platform of SP14 and the two remaining platforms of SP 22-24 have been installed, the gas recovery rate in the SP4 platform has increased, production from the North Yaran oil field has grown after installing a downhole pump, a mobile separator has been installed in the South Yaran field, the first directional well has been drilled in the South Azadegan field, the safety coefficient of production from South Azadegan has been upgraded while an agreement has been signed with Petropars for the development of the Balal field.