PETROLEUM Development Oman (PDO) has announced the discovery of three new oil fields. Appraisal wells drilled by the PDO in 2008 have also revealed additional volumes of hydrocarbons in existing oil and gas fields.

Announcing the discovery, PDO managing director John Malcolm says: “The fact that the new oil discoveries were brought on stream quickly means that they are already contributing to PDO’s oil production.”
John Malcolm says that two of the new oil fields – Taliah and Malaan West – were found amongst PDO’s Lekhwair cluster of fields in northwest Oman. “They are both part of the Upper Shuaiba geological formation, which contains many of the reservoirs of PDO’s main fields,” he says.
The discovery of the third oil field, Rabab Southeast, he says, confirmed the preliminary results of well tests that the company had mentioned early last year. First oil production from Rabab Southeast is expected later this year through the existing conventional production facilities at Harweel, in south Oman.
Stating that 2008 was a challenging but successful year for PDO, he said: “Our production of hydrocarbon liquids, by which I mean crude oil and condensates, has increased compared to the previous year. Last year, production of oil and condensate totalled 633,000 barrels per day (bpd) compared to 607,000 bpd in 2007.”
For the third year running, PDO produced in excess of one million barrels per day of oil equivalent in the form of crude oil, natural gas and condensate.
“Once again, our oil production was on target at over 556,000 barrels of oil per day, comfortably within our target range of 540-560,000 barrels per day,” he says.
Informing that a key performer within PDO was the Gas Directorate, which in October 2008 celebrated 30 years of uninterrupted gas supplies to the Sultanate, he said, “In 2008, gas and condensate output stood at 467,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day.”
About the extent to which the recent fall in oil prices has affected business, Malcolm says: “As an operating company, PDO’s goal is to create a long term sustainable source of wealth for the Sultanate.
“We recognise that, in the short term, lower oil prices mean lower revenue for the government and we can help to offset this by reducing our costs and improving efficiency. And we are doing just that.”