According to Iraq’s oil minister, French oil and gas giant Total will build four giant energy projects in southern Iraq under a $27 billion deal signed on Sunday (Sep 5).
The company will start the projects immediately with an initial $10 billion investment, CEO Patrick Pouyanne said at the signing ceremony.
Iraq’s oil minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar told reporters that the first phase will include a $3 billion investment by Total in a project to inject sea water into oilfield to enhance crude recovery.
Additionally, Total will provide $2 billion to build a processing plant for gas produced in the southern field of West Qurna 2, Tuba, Majnoon, and Luhais.
In the first phase of development, Total is expected to produce 300 million cubic feet of gas per day and the amount is expected to double after the second phase of development is complete.
The gas produced from Total’s project in Southern Iraq will help the county to cut its gas imports from Iran and save cost.
Currently, the cost of importing gas from Iran is around $8 per million Btu while the gas produced from Total’s project would be $1.50 per million Btu cheaper.
There’s also a solar power plant project and a project to increase crude output from the Artawi oilfield.
