Iran Pumped 18% More Gas from South Pars During First Six Months

Iran pumped close to 46 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas from South Pars field during six months of current Iranian calendar year which began on March 21, 2015.

The production was higher by almost 18 percent compared with the same period last year, managing director of the South Pars Gas Complex Masoud Hassani said, reported state owned Shana News. Daily output stood at 280 million cubic meters in the six-month period.

The South Pars Complex produced 400,000 barrels of gas condensates, 8,000 tons of liquefied petroleum gas or LPG and 5,200 tons of ethane during the period.

Hassani added that associated petroleum gas burned off in gas flares was cut to 220 mcm from 420 mcm.

South Pars is the world's largest gas field, shared between Iran and Qatar, covering an area of 3,700 square kilometers of Iran's territorial waters in the Persian Gulf. It adjoins Qatar’s North Field, which measures 6,000 square kilometers.

Although the government has invested $9 billion in developing the 27 phases of South Pars field since August 2013, Shana said, the figure still is significantly shy of the $50 billion in investments Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh has deemed necessary for developing the country's joint oil and gas fields.