12 November 2007 - 13:42
  • News ID: 118705

Amak plan, which pertains to collection of the associated gas from Bangestan layer, is the biggest environmental project to be thus far implemented by the Iranian oil industry.

Since the inauguration of the first gas collection post in February 2005, emission of more than 74 billion cu. ft. hydrocarbon pollutants has been prevented.

Since associated gas produced in Bangestan layer includes about 2.5 percent hydrogen sulfide and burning them will cause serious environmental contamination, they should be collected. Since Iran is the owner of the world’s second biggest gas reserves and gas consumption is very high in industrial, commercial and household sectors, treatment of sour gases for subsequent use is of utmost importance. Amak is a Persian acronym, which stands for the first letters of names of oil fields where the associated gas is being collected. The oil fields include Ab Teimur, Mansouri and Maroun, Ahvaz, and Kupal fields.

Ali Aghajarian, member of board of directors and production manager of National Iranian South Oil Company has explained about the plan in the following interview with Petroenergy Information Network.

 

Q: Please explain about the importance of Amak plan.

A: Amak is the first totally mechanized plan to be implemented by the National Iranian South Oil Company and one of the most complicated plans to be carried out by the Iranian oil industry’s engineers and specialists in Ahvaz region. The plan has been ordered by the National Iranian Oil Company as client and is being implemented by Petroleum Engineering and Development Company in cooperation with a consortium comprising IRITEC and IRASCO companies. The plan started in June 2000 and has, thus far, cost about 500 million dollars. One of the main goals of the plan is to prevent environmental contamination and implementing the policy of “no flaring” which aims at preventing the associated gas from being burnt. The plan includes full engineering operations, construction and purchase of seven sour gas compressors, a sweetening plant and a compressor for acid gas in addition to about 280 km of gas pipeline in over marshlands as well as urban and rural areas and construction of about 100 km of power lines.

Since the associated gas produced by Bangestan layer cannot be used for its high hydrogen sulfide content and is usually burned at flairs, the plan has envisaged that a compression station should be built along each production post, so that, gases would be collected before being sent through several pipelines to a sweetening plant where they would be converted to sweet gas after being treated by diethanolamine and desulfurization. In other words, the main goal of the plan is to prevent emission of environmental pollutants by collecting, dehydrating and sweetening sour gases and converting them to sweet gas.

 

Q: How far the plan has progressed?
A: A group of 140 consultant engineering, executive contractor as well as manufacturing companies are involved in this plan under leadership of the consortium both inside and outside Iran. to implement the plan, eight compression and dehydration stations, a gas sweetening plant, 280 km of sour and acid gas transfer pipeline with diameters of 4 – 18 inches, and 95 km of high-voltage 11 kv and 33 kv power lines have been made operational in addition to three posts set up by Water and Wastewater Company of Khuzestan province and three subsidiary power posts.

Compression and dehydration stations, a gas sweetening refinery, sour gas pipelines and power lines related to this plan have been build around Ahvaz, Ramhormoz, Shadegan, and Bandar Imam cities over an area of 6,000 square kilometers. The plan is being implemented as engineering, procurement, and commissioning (EPC) by a consortium comprising Italy’s IRASCO and Iran’s IRITEC companies and has, thus far, progressed 99 percent.

 

Q: How much gas is to be collected and what portion of it has been realized?

A: The plan for collection and sweetening of the associated gas from Bangestan layer pursued environmental goals including to prevent daily burning of 241 million cu. ft. of sour gas, preventing daily emission of air pollutants in huge amounts and preventing lost of 640,000 cu. m. oxygen per hour. Thus far, 90 percent of goals have been achieved.

Since the first compression unit was made operational in February 2005, a total of 74 billion cu. ft. as has been collected, which should have been burnt if Amak plan had not been implemented. Also, profits through treatment of the collected gas have been hefty?

 

Q: How much?
A: Profits exceeded 132 million dollars by late September 2007 and were appropriated to repayment of the project costs.

 

Q: Please explain about other products of the plan and resultant revenues.

A: Processing rich gas produced by gas and liquid gas plants and production of 28,000 barrels per day sweet gas liquids has served to compensate feed shortages faced by Bandar Imam Petrochemical Complex. Also, 182 million cu. ft. gas has been produced for use in industrial and household sectors. Increased production of crude oil through sending produced sour gas liquids back to oil production units has been also another achievement of the plan.

News ID 118705

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