Production from Qatar's Al Khaleej field rising

July 10, 1997 Crude oil production from the Qatari offshore Al Khaleej concession reached 17,000 bpd beginning of July, with efforts to increase output to 30,000 bpd by November continuing. The offshore field is being developed by a consortium of Elf Aquitaine of France and Agip of Italy, under a production-sharing agreement signed with the Qatar General Petroleum Corporation (QGPC) in January 1989. The Al Khaleej field (block 6) is operated by Elf Petroleum Qatar (EPQ). Oil was first discovered in the Al Khaleej reservoir in 1991 and following this, EPQ initiated a development plan aimed at producing nearly 45,000 bpd of oil by March 1998.
The field, according to seismic surveys, is estimated to have recoverable reserves of 200 million barrels of oil. It is located 155 km north-east of Doha and went onstream in March this year, producing at the initial rate of 6,500 bpd. According to the development plan submitted by EPQ, Elf is to drill a total of 6 wells and set up 2 offshore platforms. Until now, 3 wells have been drilled and 1 offshore platform provided.
Crude produced from the Al Khaleej field is transported through a 12-inch subsea pipeline to Hahlul island (offshore storage terminal), where it is blended with Qatar marine crude. The blending is done to achieve a particular composition before loading into VLCC's for export.