Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) is targeting savings of around $3bn over a five-year period through cost optimisation, waste elimination and efficiency-driven initiatives, according to a high-level official of the company.
Haifa al Khaifi, finance director, said the savings are being accrued as a result of, among other initiatives, a programme of Contract Optimisation Reviews that PDO has undertaken in collaboration with its sizable contracting and vendor community.
Haifa made the comments during a panel discussion held as part of a seminar hosted by Oman France Amitie (Oman-French Friendship Association) at the Grand Hyatt Muscat this week.
A key focus area for the company, however, is to improve production in support of majority shareholder the Omani government’s economic objectives, said Haifa, noting that combined output of crude, gas and condensates presently averages 1.3mn barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd).
While early monetisation of new discoveries is one notable strategy that is helping PDO mitigate the effects of the downturn, another focuses on enhanced well and reservoir management, the finance director pointed out.
Notwithstanding the downturn, PDO is also making a stronger commitment to technology in driving its business, said Haifa. Of the 50 – 70 technologies that are tested at PDO at any given time, two types of technologies are set to make further headway: solar-based renewables for steam injection, and reed bed techniques for disposal of produced water.
Under a partnership with German technology firm Bauer, PDO’s Reed Bed project in Nimr is helping tackle some of the colossal volumes of oil-contaminated water that is being generated alongside crude production. For every barrel of oil, PDO produces around 8 – 9 barrels of water – volumes that cost PDO sizable amounts if they are to be disposed of in deep wells.
Nimr’s reed beds however handle some 750,000-800,000 bpd of produced water, yielding around 2,000 bpd of oil that adds to the company’s bottomline, she said.
Likewise, PDO’s Miraah solar project will produce 5.6 trillion BTU of steam for its heavy oil fields in Amal, offsetting the need for valuable natural gas which gas be used for value-enhancing ventures, she said.
Going forward, PDO is also keen to secure financial independent and alleviate its dependence on the government for its funding requirements, said the Finance Director. Citing its success in raising $4 billion in funding from international institutions last July, PDO has the wherewithal to raise finance for its future investment requirements, she added.
