Dr Mohammed bin Hamad al Rumhy, the Omani ministry of oil and gas has said that the sultanate will see a RO 400 million investment during 2001 in developing oil fields, enhanced oil recovery schemes and improving existing production systems, reported the Oman Daily Observer.
Production of crude oil, the minister stated, is expected to increase to one million barrels per day. The country’s reserves of oil will reach 5.8 billion barrels.
Extensive exploration activity since 1970 have increased Oman’s oil reserves by 5 billion barrels. New discoveries boosted the daily oil production from 332,000 barrels per day in 1970 to 904,000 barrels a day at the end of 1999.
Al-Rumhy referred to his ministry’s efforts in attracting foreign investment, noting that thus far multinational companies are involved in the sultanate on a production sharing. Four companies, including the Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), are producing crude oil, while others are involved in exploration.
The sultanate’s gas reserves have received similar attention. Gas reserves have increased by 26 trillion cubic feet (TCF) since 1975, and particularly since a major gas deposit was discovered in 1989. Total gas reserves now stand at about 30 TCF.
The minister stressed that the government's general strategy is to reduce its dependency on oil by diversifying the economy. Over the coming years, the contribution of oil in gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to decrease. At the same time, the contribution of the gas sector is expected to increase significantly.—(Albawaba-MEBG)
© 2000 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
