Iraq Signs Contract with Schlumberger to Raise Production at Akkas Gas Field

Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Affairs and Minister of Oil, Engineer Hayan Abdul-Ghani Al-Sawad, confirmed that the Ministry of Oil and the Middle Oil Company have achieved a major, long-awaited accomplishment: the exploitation of gas from the Akkas gas field in Anbar Governorate. The Minister explained that the Middle Oil Company has been tasked with completing this project, having contracted with the American company Schlumberger to drill wells in the field to raise production rates to 100 cubic meters per day. He noted that the contract with the Ukrainian company has been cancelled.

The Minister indicated that a contract will be signed later to construct surface facilities to exploit gas from the field. There is also another complementary contract with the Oil Projects Company to establish a pipeline network that transports gas from the wells to the central processing units in the field. He indicated that the gas produced from the field will be directed to the Anbar Combined Gas Plant, currently under construction by the Ministry of Electricity.

The Minister stressed the need for the contracting company to adhere to the contractual timelines, given the urgent need for gas. He explained that this project will add an estimated 60 MMcf/day of gas, bringing the field's total gas production to 100 MMcf/day, up from the original target of 400 MMcf/day.

The signing ceremony was attended by the Undersecretaries of the Ministry and the Directors-General of the relevant Ministry departments.

For his part, Mr. Gokhan Yarim, President of Schlumberger Integrated Projects, said, "We are pleased to sign a contract to develop a gas field in Iraq. We will work to implement the contract within the specified timelines, and we hope to collaborate further in the future."

The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Oil for Extraction Affairs, Mr. Bassem Mohammed Khudair, stated that the signing of today's contract represents a production achievement in the gas sector, especially since it was signed with a well-established American company with which Iraq has cooperated for decades. He noted that the signing of the contract represents the development of the first phase of the Akkas gas field, aiming to reach a production capacity of 100 cubic meters per day. This comes within the Ministry's vision to develop the field through national efforts through the Central Oil Company and the Oil Projects Company, in cooperation with the American company Schlumberger. He emphasized the Ministry's commitment to closing the flared gas file, as well as adding gas production capacity through the development of gas fields such as the Akkas and Mansouriya fields. He noted that the signing of the contract with Schlumberger confirms the availability of a safe investment environment in Anbar Governorate.

The Director General of the Central Oil Company, Mr. Mohammed Yassin, affirmed the support of the oil sector leadership for the implementation of the Akkas field development project, noting that the contract has strategic economic and technical dimensions in terms of the volume of gas produced, the quality of investment, and the new economic model. He also noted that it provides an opportunity for oil companies and a role in operating the fields through direct contracts with service companies.