São Paulo – Kuwait plans on drilling wells to extract heavy oil with intention to produce up to 60,000 barrels per day by 2017. The information was released by the local newspaper Al Rai and reproduced by Reuters this Wednesday (5th).
The country’s production capacity is 3 million barrels per day. The government wants to prospect for more heavy oil, despite the difficulties in extraction and processing, according to Hosnia Hashem, the deputy managing director of Kuwait Oil Company, according to Al Rai.
“Approximately 1,200 wells will be drilled for heavy oil production,” Hashem told the newspaper. According to her, production capacity may reach 270,000 barrels per day by 2030, in a project that is part of a long-term plan set forth by the Kuwait Petroleum Corp., which controls the Kuwait Oil Company.
The cost of each well will range from US$ 525,500 to US$ 1.05 million. According to Hashem, extraction and production will be difficult, but one of the main concerns was finding specialists to work in the project, due to the dearth of specialized personnel. According to the publication, she said potential demand for heavy oil is worth the effort and the spending.
“The global market has changed, and now it is looking for heavy oil. We have clients in India who are asking for heavy oil as soon as possible,” she said, according to the newspaper. The country has three refineries and is planning on building a fourth one.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
