Iran extends contract for drilling in Turkmen waters

TEHRAN,May 20(MNA) - Iran has extended its contract with the UAE for another three years to drill oil wells in Turkemn waters, the Mehr News Agency quoted North Drilling Company’s managing director Hedayatollah Khademi as saying. Iran has been operating the Iran-Khazar drilling rig in Turkmen waters since 2005 and will continue the operations till 2016, he added. Iran will pay $159 thousand per day to the UAE employer for renting the drilling rig. In July 2012, Khademi said Iran earned some $300 million from drilling 30 oil wells in Turkmenistan waters in the Caspian Sea during the past 5 years. The country has prepared comprehensive plans to carry out drilling operations and export technical and engineering services to different countries, he added. Meanwhile, Iran plans to increase the number of its drilling rigs operating onshore and offshore oilfields by 36 units to reach 134 units by March 2014, the National Iranian Oil Company’s (NIOC) managing director said. Ahmad Qalebani told the Shana news agency that the country’s daily oil and gas outputs should amount to five million barrels and 1.47 billion cubic meters by 2015. Some 2,500 oil and gas wells should be drilled and commissioned during Iran’s fifth five-year economic development plan (2010-2015).