Iraq
Gazprom Neft develops the Badra field in eastern Iraq and is engaged in geological exploration in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region.
The Badra field holds oil-in-place reserves of 3 billion barrels (upward of 400 million tons).
In 2017, Badra produced 3.8 million tons of oil.
Project scope
Badra field
In late 2009, the consortium of Gazprom Neft, Kogas (Korea), Petronas (Malaysia), and TPAO (Turkey) won the Iraqi Government’s contract for the development of the Badra field located in the Wasit Province in the eastern part of the country.
Gazprom Neft, as the project operator, holds a 30 per cent stake in the project, Kogas – 22.5 per cent, Petronas – 15 per cent, and TPAO – 7.5 per cent. The Iraqi Government, represented in the project by the Iraqi Oil Exploration Company (OEC), holds a 25 per cent stake. The Badra field development project’s lifecycle is 20 years with a possible five-year extension. The project investments are estimated at some USD 2 billion. Pursuant to the contract, the investors will be reimbursed for their costs and remunerated.
Blocks in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region
Gazprom Neft holds a participating interest of 40 per cent in the Garmian block and 80 per cent in the Halabja and Shakal blocks. The licensed blocks are being explored. The Sarqala field located within the Garmian block has produced a total of 3 million barrels of oil.
Development
The drilling of the first appraisal well at Badra was commenced in November 2011. In December 2013, Gazprom Neft achieved first oil from Badra during the pilot production of well BD4. Commercial oil production started on May 31, 2014, when the construction of a 165-kilometer oil pipeline linking the field to the Iraqi pipeline system was completed. Commercial oil shipments began on September 1, 2014. The Badra development contract’s basic condition on feeding the trunkline with no less than 15,000 barrels per day for 90 consecutive days was fulfilled in late November 2014.
As a result, the project reached a new phase that allowed the investor consortium to start receiving reimbursement and remuneration.
On April 9, 2015, Gazprom Neft received the first Kirkuk oil shipment of 500,000 barrels (around 70,000 tons) from the Iraqi Government as compensation for the company’s investments in the Badra field development. In 2017, Badra produced a total of 3.8 million tons of oil.
Alexander Dyukov, Chairman of the Management Board of Gazprom Neft: “In just a few years, the consortium of companies led by Gazprom Neft has prepared Badra, one of the most geologically complex fields in Iraq, for full-scale commercial development. This is our first large international project in the production segment implemented from scratch. We will apply the unique experience gained in this project to the development of other fields in Russia and abroad.”