National Iranian Oil Co. has discovered a supergiant sweet gas field, Tabnak, in the southern part of the country.
Tabnak contains reserves of 15.7 tcf of gas and 240 million bbl of condensate, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh told the Iranian News Agency.
The Tabnak structure is 42 km long and 5 km wide. The reservoir is 750 m thick. The first well was drilled to TD 3,345 m. The report did not specify how many wells have been drilled at Tabnak.
Zangeneh estimated the field's production capacity at 1.5-2.0 bcfd of gas and 24,000-32,000 b/d of condensate. Development was to start in second half 2000, OPEC News Agency reported.
Gas from Tabnak, Shanool, and Varavi fields will be transferred to the Fourth Trans-National Gas Pipeline, Zangeneh said. Varavi, discovered in 1975, has gas in the Permian Khuff formation.
The fields lie across the Persian Gulf from Qatar. Tabnak is in a mountainous region near the road that connects the towns of Langeh, Kangan, and Bushehr.
Tabnak's production will greatly contribute to the development of regions south of Fars Province, Zangeneh said.
Iran recently reported a large oil discovery, Azadegan, near the border with Iraq. Azadegan field was announced by the Ministry of Petroleum to have a production potential of 400,000 b/d by 2003 (OGJ, Feb. 14, 2000, p. 44).
