MEOG: IDC completes East Baghdad well

The Iraqi Drilling Co. (IDC) this week reported that it has completed the drilling of the latest in a 27-well drilling campaign targeting the East Baghdad field for Chinese firm EBS.

IDC said that well EBS-68 was drilled to a depth of 3,548 metres, employing horizontal drilling at a 90-degree angle, mainly owing to the reservoir’s location beneath the Iraqi capital, which poses significant problems for activities on the surface.

The well is the 15th drilled under the campaign for EBS, a local Iraqi subsidiary of China ZhenHua Oil Co., itself a subsidiary of the state-owned China North Industries Group (Norinco). IDC is working with China Oilfield Services Ltd (COSL) on the campaign.

In common with other wells drilled to-date, IDC noted that operations were carried out using the IDC 36 rig.

In December, the Ministry of Oil’s (MoO) Midland Oil Co. (MOC) opened a crude processing facility (CPF) at the field. MOC director general, Muhammad Yassin Hassan inaugurated the field’s first CPF during a ceremony in which he thanked China ZhenHua Oil Co.

In August, the field was reported by MOC to be producing 30,000 barrels per day, with peak production under the contract signed with EBS in 2018 envisaged at 40,000 bpd. However, during a visit to the field in April, Abdulghani said the ministry plans to increase oil production to over 80,000 bpd, and dry gas to 50mn cubic metres.