MUSCAT: Oman is to invest $1 billion in a field southeast of the capital to boost gas production. Like most of its Gulf neighbors, Oman is short of the gas it needs to meet rapidly rising demand for industry and power. “We are planning to produce 90 million cubic feet of gas per day from block 60 by the first quarter of 2013 to cater for increasing local demands,” state-run Oman Oil Exploration and Production Co (OEPC) said Sunday. Block 60, covering nearly 1,500 square kilometers, was ceded by British-based BG in October and its assets were bought by OEPC. BG had planned to start gas output from the block in 2012 and has already made substantial drilling investment there. Oman, a non-OPEC producer, produces 864,000 barrels per day of crude oil and an average of 3 billion cubic feet of gas per day. Underscoring the importance of the concession deal, especially with regard to Block 60's potential to significantly address the country's burgeoning gas requirements, top officials of the Ministry of Oil and Gas and OOCEP's parent organization attended the signing. Speaking to media soon after the signing, Dr Zaid Al Siyabi, Director General of Oil and Gas Exploration and Production, said the concession would be developed in two distinct phases. Phase 1, targeting the southern part of the block with its prize Abu Butabul field, would first be taken in hand for development. Commenting on the timeline for the Phase 1 implementation of the project, he said: “We have a one year timeline from today's concession signing to come up with the Field Development Plan.”
