Shell, the operator of Iraq’s giant Manjoon oil field, has contracted engineering company Foster Wheeler to help build new facilities and rehabilitate existing infrastructure to boost Iraq’s production capacity and avoid a slowdown in exports.
Foster Wheeler and engineering services company Kentz, through a joint venture in Dubai, won the two-year design contract for the field facilities, which are located some 40 miles north of the port city of Basra.
No financial terms of the deal were released.
'There are some unique challenges in Majnoon,” said Tom Hooft van Huysduynen, Project Director of Majnoon Field Development, Shell Iraq Petroleum Development B.V. “Seamless cooperation with Foster Wheeler Kentz Energy Services DMCC is not only essential in moving forward in safety but also in the delivery of the Majnoon Portfolio.”
Manjoon is one of four giant fields—along with Rumaila, Zubair and West Qurna-1--that represent the heart of Iraqi’s plans to boost output and stop the slowdown of oil exports, which began in 2013.
Iraq’s Oil Ministry signed a 20-year contract with Royal Dutch Shell PLC and Malaysia’s Petronas in 2010 to provide technical assistance in the development of the Majnoon oil field.
In September 2013, Shell restarted at Majnoon oil field. Shell is also the junior partner in the giant West Qurna-1 field with ExxonMobil.
The Iraqi government estimates Majnoon holds around 38 billion barrels of oil. Shell is the operator, with a 45% share. Petronas holds 30%, while the Iraqi state holds 25%.
The Iraqi government signed a series of service contracts with major oil companies such as Shell, BP, Exxon and Total at the end of 2009 to develop its oilfields, neglected for decades due to war and sanctions.
Rumaila, Zubair and West Qurna-1 have added 600,000 barrels per day to Iraqi’s production, while another field, Garraf in the south, began production only this month, with 35,000 bpd. Garraf was developed by Petronas and Japan Petroleum.
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By James Burgess of Oilprice.com
PS I have filed a claim in the Hague international court and the RDS judges turned the claim down.