An oil industry official said a Canadian company has been put in charge of studying the economic viability of a development project in Binaloud oilfield.
Head of Technology and Research at Iranian Offshore Oil Company (IOOC) Javad Rostami said IOOC plans to conduct studies on the field, adding, "Years ago, studies carried out by an Indian company revealed that the development of the field has no economic justification."
He underlined that this time the project to study the economic feasibility of Binaloud oilfield has been entrusted to a Canadian company. "Currently, we are looking forward to receiving the final report from the company," he said, according to Mehr News Agency.
The official noted that ongoing studies will take into account the need for advanced technologies for developing offshore fields. "Oil in Binaloud field is of heavy type and we expect the results of the study to be fruitful."
Binaloud oilfield is one of the largest hydrocarbon fields in the Persian Gulf and its exploration dates back to 2002.
The contract for the development of Farsi block, an offshore hydrocarbon block in the Persian Gulf which includes Binaloud oilfield and Farzad B gas field, was signed with a consortium of three state-owned Indian companies in 2002 following the discovery of hydrocarbon reserves in the area.
On the basis of studies, in situ oil reserves in Binaloud have been estimated at up to one billion barrels with an API of 14.
According to a comprehensive development program, 1.1 billion cubic meters of natural gas are expected to be produced per day in the first phase of operation.