MUSCAT: OQ Exploration & Production (EP) – the upstream energy arm of OQ Group – has reported a significant 11% increase in the average production of hydrocarbons from its sizable portfolio of operated and non-operated assets to 246K barrels of oil equivalent/day (boe/d) in 2023.
OQ EP has interests in as many as 10 upstream blocks in the Sultanate of Oman, as well as two other oilfield assets. It includes Block 60 (with 60% participating interest), Block 48 (60%), Block 42 (50%), Block 10 (20%), Block 9 (45%), Block 61 (30%), Block 65 (27%), Block 30 (27%), Karim oilfields (25%), Rima oilfields (25%), Block 53 (20%), and Block 52 (15%).
The Group also has a 20% interest in the exploration rights and license for exploring for oil in an oilfield concession located in Dunga (Kazakhstan) through OOCL, a 100% subsidiary of the Group.
According to Ashraf al Maamari, Acting Group CEO – OQ, the output increase surpassed OQ EP’s production target for 2023. “The Group’s continued emphasis on operational excellence was also highlighted in 2023. On the Upstream front, the early on-stream of Block 10, coupled with persisting performance from OQ Exploration and Production (OQ EP)’s existing blocks, led to OQ exceeding its annual production target for the year,” he stated in OQ Group’s recently issued 2023 Annual Report.
Significantly, of the combined average oil and gas production of 246K boe/day achieved in 2023, 65.3K boe/d came from OQ EP’s operated assets in Oman. The remaining 180.2K boe/d of production was generated by non-operated assets and joint ventures.
Crude oil production and condensate production from its operated assets averaged 59.9K barrels per day in 2023, up from 51K bpd in 2022. The corresponding figure for its non-operated assets climbed to 92.2K bpd in 2023, up from 86K bpd a year earlier.
Natural gas production from its operated assets averaged 16 million standard cubic feet/day (mmscf/d) in 2023, down from 27 mmscf/d in 2022. Output from its non-operated assets climbed in 2023 to 518K mmscf/d, up from 468K mmscf/d a year earlier.
OQ’s operational performance across its Commercial and Downstream portfolio was also noteworthy during 2023, the Acting Group CEO said. The highlight of the year was the Duqm Refinery’s (OQ8) first on-spec production of diesel ahead of the plant’s opening in 2024.
OQ Refineries & Petrochemical Industries LLC (OQ RPI) processed a total of 81 million barrels of crude in 2023, which was slightly lower than the previous year’s total of 84.7 million barrels. Polymer production from OQ Polymers amounted to 1.272 million tonnes, up from 1.242 million tonnes in 2022. LPG production climbed to 336,000 metric tonnes in 2023, up from 280,000 metric tonnes in 2022.
Ammonia production by OQ Ammonia soared to 264,000 metric tonnes in 2023, up from 90,000 metric tonnes in 2022 following its start-up that year. Finally, methanol production amounted to 904,000 metric tonnes in 2023, down from 1.133 million metric tonnes in 2022.
Highlighting the Group’s performance across the Upstream, Downstream and Commercial segments in 2023, Chairman Mulham Basheer al Jarf added: “Alongside the Group’s aforementioned accomplishments, OQ also maintained its focus on growth during the year and achieved several landmark milestones, beginning with the inaugurations of the OQ Ammonia Plant in Salalah and the Bisat Oil Field within Block 60 in January, which enabled OQ to achieve an 11% increase in daily production compared to 2022 and reach an average of 246 kboe/d in 2023. Additionally, the Group progressed several of its growth projects from the construction phase to the operational phases, with Oman Tank Terminal Company (OTTCO) in Duqm completing 19 shipments and transferring 26.6 Mn barrels of oil through its pipeline to OQ8 in 2023.”
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