Tehran Times cited Mr Ahmad Qalebani MD of National Iranian Oil Company as saying that Iran will begin early production at the Yadavaran oilfield which is associated with Iraq, by the end of the current calendar year.

The oilfield is estimated to hold around 12 billion barrels of in situ crude oil, some 12.5 trillion cubic feet of associated gases as well as nearly 1.9 billion barrels of condensates.

Mr Mehdi Fakour said that Iran and the Chinese Sinopec signed a buyback contract in 2007 on the development of the Yadavaran oilfield. Iran is by no means lagging Iraq in developing joint oilfields.

He said that currently eight drilling rigs are in operation in joint oilfields with Iraq and the output is satisfactory. Iran produces some 68,000 barrels per day of crude oil in four oilfields associated with Iraq.

Mr Rostam Qasemi oil minister of Iran said that the Iranian government should consider plans for the development of joint oilfields in the border areas with Iraq.

Mr Qasemi said that the government should increase the budgets for the development of joint oilfields. "The oil industry's infrastructure needs more than IRR 500 trillion of investment to achieve Iran's 20 year economic perspective plan goals."

He said that by the end of the fifth development plan (2015), the country's oil production must increase to 5.2 million barrels per day and this should happen from the country's joint fields.

(Sourced from www.tehrantimes.com)