Sonatrach, BP award $2.5 billion in contracts for In Salah development

Aug. 13, 2001
Algerian state oil and gas company Sonatrach, in association with BP PLC, on Sunday awarded three contracts worth a total of $2.5 billion to an international consortium for the development of Algeria's In Salah gas fields, said the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' news agency.


By an OGJ Online Correspondent

ALGIERS, Aug. 13 -- Algerian state oil and gas company Sonatrach, in association with BP PLC, on Sunday awarded three contracts worth a total of $2.5 billion to an international consortium for the development of Algeria's In Salah gas fields, said the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' news agency.

BP and Sonatrach agreed to develop the seven fields in 1997; another field, Boutraa, has been earmarked for later development. Work on the project has been ongoing for some time (OGJ, Dec. 4, 2000, p. 44).

The consortium includes Halliburton Co. units M.W. Kellogg and Brown & Root as well as Bechtel Corp., Japanese company JGC Corp. and Algerian drilling company Enafor.

Kellogg, Brown & Root, and JGC will provide treatment units and a gas gathering network. Bechtel will build gathering lines and a 460 km gas pipeline to link the project to Hassi R'mel.

Enafor will drill 71 producing wells and complete well workovers.

The project will come on stream from three of the fields -- Krechba, Teguentour, and Reg -- in 2003 and eventually peak at 9 billion cu m/year.

BP will pay 65% and Sonatrach 35%, said OPECNA.