Zanganeh said that the drilling of 40 wells has already been commissioned to the National Iranian Drilling Company (NIDC) following cancellation of a contract with China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), SHANA reported on Monday.
“Based on plans, 150 wells are to be drilled in the first phase in South Azadegan. The number of wells will soar to 185 in the second phase,” he said.
CNPC’s several years of foot-dragging on the development of South Azadegan, shared with neighboring Iraq, ended in termination of cooperation with this contractor.
In the first phase of the development of South Azadegan field, 320,000 b/d of crude will be recovered, which is why 385 wells need to be drilled in this field. So far, 12 wells have been drilled.
The initial budget approved for the development of South Azadegan is 500 million dollars plus 500 trillion rials.