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IDC completes two Drilling Projects in Iraq

By John Lee.

The Iraqi Drilling Company (IDC) has recently completed the drilling of oil well 48 at the Nasiriyah oil field.

The company’s general manager, Engineer Basem Abdel Karim Nasser, said this was part of the contract with Dhi Qar Oil Company (DQOC) to drill 20 oil wells at the field in cooperation with US-based Weatherford.

Drilling operations were carried out over 18 months using the IDC 44 drilling rig.

IDC has also recently completed the drilling of oil well J120P in the Al-Gharraf field, which reached a depth of 3,037 meters.

Nasser said this was the thirteenth well drilled as part of the contract with the Malaysian Petronas company to drill 28 directional oil wells in the Al-Gharraf oil field in Dhi Qar Governorate.

The work was carried out using the IDC 54 drilling rig (pictured), which has a power of 2000 HP.

The company owns 43 drilling and reclamation rigs distributed in the Iraqi oil fields.

(Source: Ministry of Oil)

The post IDC completes two Drilling Projects in Iraq first appeared on Iraq Business News.

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Petronas opens New Well at Garraf Field

By John Lee.

Petronas Carigali Iraq Holding B.V. has opened its K-123 well in the Garraf Contract Area in Dhi Qar.

Present at the event were, Petronas Vice President International Assets of Upstream Mr. M Jukris A Wahab; Director, Managing Executive Officer and President of Middle East, Asia & Europe Project Division of Japex, Mr. Toshiyuki Hirata; and Petronas Iraq Country Chairman, Mr. Norafizal Mat Saad.

The field is operated by Petronas (45%), Japex Garraf Ltd (30%), and North Oil Company (25%). (Japex Garraf Ltd is owned as follows: Japex 55%, Mitsubishi Corporation 10%, and JOGMEC 35%).

(Source: Petronas)

The post Petronas opens New Well at Garraf Field first appeared on Iraq Business News.

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Petronas Suspends Operations at Garraf Oil Field

By John Lee.

Malaysia’s Petronas has said it has shut down production and safely evacuated all of its Malaysian employees from Iraq due to coronavirus (COVID-19).

In a statement, the company said:

“In view of the COVID-19 pandemic and as a precautionary measure to ensure the health, safety and well-being of our employees, PETRONAS has safely evacuated all 80 of our Malaysian employees from PETRONAS Carigali Iraq Holding B.V. (PCIHBV), located at the Garraf Contract Area, in the Thi Qar Province, Republic of Iraq.

“This is certainly an unfortunate and unforeseeable event that is not within PCIHBV’s control. PCIHBV had accordingly issued the necessary notice in accordance with the provisions of the Development and Production Service Contract and engaged with the host authority prior to the suspension of operations and evacuation of our employees.

“Operations at the Garraf Contract Area are now temporarily suspended until further notice.

“We are also closely monitoring the situation.“

(Source: Petronas)

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Airbus Shopping Spree for AirAsia X

AirAsia X, the long-haul unit of the AirAsia Group, has confirmed a firm order with Airbus for an additional batch of single and twin-aisle aircraft. In total, the Kuala Lumpur-based firm will acquire 12 Airbus A330-900 examples and and 30 A321XLRs.

The deal, signed on August 30 in the Malaysian capital, increases the number of A330neos ordered by AirAsia X to 78, cementing the low-cost carrier’s position as the largest airline customer for the new type. In a further indication of the power of the Airbus/AirAsia partnership, the A321XLR order sees the wider AirAsia Group solidify its status as the world’s largest airline customer for the A320 Family, having now ordered a staggering 622 examples.

Tony Fernandes, AirAsia Group CEO commented: “This order reaffirms our selection of the A330neo as the most efficient choice for our future widebody fleet. In addition, the A321XLR offers the longest flying range of any single aisle aircraft and will enable us to introduce services to new destinations. Together, these aircraft are perfect partners for long-haul low cost operations and will allow us to build further on our market leading position in this fast-growing sector.”

Photo: Airbus

Guillaume Faury, Airbus CEO added: “AirAsia X has been the pioneer of the long haul low cost model in the Asia-Pacific region. This new order for the A330neo and A321XLR is a true endorsement of the Airbus solution to meet mid-market demand with a combination of single aisle and widebody products. This powerful solution will provide AirAsia X with the lowest possible operating costs to expand its network and enable even more people to fly further than ever before.”

AirAsia X currently operates a fleet of 36 of the A330-300 variant on a host of services to points within the Asia-Pacific region, in addition to more sporadic operations to and from the Middle East.

Speaking as the news was announced, Rafidah Aziz, chairman of AirAsia X hinted that the new widebody arrivals could see the carrier extend its footprint further west, and potentially into southern Europe: “The A330neo’s revolutionary new features and modifications will move our long-haul service sectors up to a higher level and allow AirAsia X to look at expanding beyond the eight-hour flight radius, such as to Europe, for example,” he revealed.

Photo: Airbus-AirAsia

As part of the agreement, Airbus will expand its maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) presence in Malaysia and establish the Airbus Malaysia Digital Initiative to “enhance the competitiveness of the local aerospace sector through the application of new digital technologies” as part of a wider scheme by the country’s government to transform Malaysia into a regional aerospace hub. The European manufacturer is also due to boost its commitment to the Aerospace Malaysia Innovation Centre (AMIC) – of which it is a founding member – by appointing an innovation technical director and increasing its funding for joint research programmes, including into the production of sustainable aviation biofuels in the southeast Asian nation.

The order comes just weeks after AirAsia’s Bangkok-based long haul affiliate, AirAsia X Thailand received its first A330-900. The airframe is the first of two leased neos joining the Thai affiliate before the end of 2019.

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KNM Wins Contract at Khor Al Zubair

By John Lee.

FBM-KNM FZCO, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysia’s KNM Group, has been awarded a contract for the supply and delivery of replacement heat exchangers to the Khor Al Zubair’s gas processing plant in Basrah Province.

According to a regulatory statement, the contract from Basra Gas Company (BGC) is worth USD 2.096 million (equivalent to approximately RM8.739 million based on the exchange rate of USD1.00 : RM4.17).

The project is to be completed by 14th January 2020.

(Source: KNM)

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WSC Wins $35m Contract in Basra

By John Lee.

Malaysia-based Wah Seong Corporation Berhad (WSC) has announced that its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary Wasco Engineering International Ltd (WEIL) has been awarded a contract by Basrah Gas Company (BGC) for the design, packaging and sale of gas compressor packages and associated plant and site facilities.

The contract is valued at $34.6 million.

The scope of work of the contract involves provision of gas compressors and process equipment such as tri-ethylene glycol (TEG) unit, fuel gas conditioning skid, pipe racks, slug catcher, knock out drum, vent stack, site facilities such as office and workshop containers, lighting, safety equipment, fire and gas detectors, power generators and air compressors.

The activities undertaken will include engineering, detail design, procurement and packaging of the above process equipment. The activity is expected to commence in March 2018, and to be completed by end of 2018.

The contract is for the provision of engineering, design, supply and fabrication services which are within the business scope of the Engineering Division of the WSC Group and the risks are the normal operational risks associated with the said business. The WSC Group has previously supplied similar packages to the same customer in Iraq.

The contract is expected to contribute positively to the earnings of WSC Group over the contract period. The contract is project specific and is not renewable.

(Source: WSC)

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Petronas confirms Exit from Majnoon Oilfield

By John Lee.

Malaysia’s Petronas has reportedly confirmed that it will exit from Iraq’s Majnoon oil field along with joint stakeholder Shell.

A spokeswoman for Petronas told The National:

“Petronas confirms its exit from the Majnoon oilfield, Iraq, together with Shell. We will be working with Shell on the handover of the field to the Basra Oil Company [BOC].

“An announcement will be made once details of the handover is finalised.“

Petronas holds a 30-percent stake in the field, with Shell having 45 percent.

On 21st December, Iraq’s Ministry of Oil approved a set of measures relating to the development of the super giant field once Shell relingushes it back to Iraq; IBN Expert Blogger Ahmed Mousa Jiyad described the decision as “an important move in the right direction“.

Petronas retains interests in the Badra, Garraf, Halfaya oilfields.

(Source: The National)

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Petronas may Exit Majnoon Oil Field

By John Lee.

Malaysia’s Petronas has reportedly decided to withdraw from its 30-percent participating interest in Iraq’s giant Majnoon oil field.

According to Bloomberg, the decision came as the company considers the returns to be too low. It is expected to hire advisers to help find an interested party to take up the holding.

Shell is also said to be trying to sell its 45-percent stake in the field, following a failure to reach agreement with Iraq’s Ministry of Oil. Both Chevron and Total have expressed interest in the project.

Petronas is currently involved in Iraq’s Badra, Garraf, Halfaya, and Majnoon.

(Source: Bloomberg)