SHANA -- Danan oil field is located in western Iran. Discovered in 2007, Danan started producing oil in 2014 and its current output stands at 30,000 b/d, which is carried to Dehloran production unit for sweetening and compression. Then, it is delivered to Cheshmeh-Khosh desalting plant in Ilam Province via a 52-kilometer-long pipeline.

Danan oil field is situated 30 kilometers southeast of Dehloran and 80 kilometers northwest of Andimeshk. The main reservoirs in this field are Asmari and Bangestan (Ilam and Sarvak formations).

The Iranian Central Oil Fields Company (ICOFC) administers Danan's output. According to ICOFC officials, Phase 22 of Danan oil field is planned to undergo development.

Danan was among hydrocarbon fields introduced for investment at a conference in Tehran.

West Oil and Gas Production Company is currently handling Danan's oil output.

EOR Scenarios

A variety of scenarios for the development of Danan have so far been studied by the Supreme Council of Reservoirs at the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC). Such scenarios as natural depletion, water and gas injection have been studied, while static and dynamic models of reservoirs have been drawn up so that the field's behavior would have been examined.

The natural depletion scenario includes drilling new vertical and directional wells, while the gas injection scenario includes return of gas to a gas injection well.

These studies have shown that in the gas injection scenario, oil production wells face high GOR, while in water injection, due to the low permeability of reservoir rock, the volume of injected water is limited and cannot improve the recovery rate.

Therefore, the best scenario for the development of Danan field is natural depletion which includes drilling new wells with a high level of diversion and drilling directional wells to create more contract with the reservoir rock with a view to enlarging the well flow area. Compared with vertical drilling, this method would require fewer number of wells. The Reservoirs Supreme Council were of the view that due to existing uncertainties and non-examination of some necessary scenarios in this study, it is necessary to gather complementary data for decision-making about the best method of reservoir management.

NIOC and Petroiran Development Company (PEDCO) recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to study Danan field. It was the first MOU within the framework of newly developed Iran Petroleum Contract (IPC) between NIOC and PEDCO.

Danan Development Goals

The goal sought in the development of Danan oil field is to provide required facilities to increase production from Danan field (Asmari-Bangestan formation) by 15,000 b/d. According to studies carried out by Iran Reservoir Engineering Studies Office, the scenario for the optimal development of Asmari is envisaged for an output ceiling of 10,000 b/d. The formation has been studied after drilling four new directional wells to gather required information for designing. As far as development of Bangestan reservoir is concerned, whose objective is an output ceiling of 15,000 b/d, two steps have been proposed. The first step, which foresees an output of 5,000 b/d, involves drilling two horizontal wells. After the evaluation of the findings of this stage, the description for Phase II will be presented.

In order to raise the output to 15,000 b/d at Danan (Asmari and Bangestan formations), drilling of six new wells (four directional wells in Asmari formation and two horizontal wells at Bangestan formation), workover of the four existing wells, installation of wellhead equipment at six wells, land reclamation, conducting flow tests of production, sampling and full analysis of PVT, XPT and FMI assessment logging and coring for completing reservoir data, building 30 kilometers of streamline, carrying out comprehensive studies on Danan oil field (Asmari-Bangestan), development of satellite manifold for connecting six new streamlines and installation of equipment based on standards, basic and detailed studies, and power supply of 0.6 MW are envisaged.

Based on the description of need for the development of Phase 1 of Danan field, designing satellite manifolds including separator, pump and pipes for oil and gas delivery from Danan at the rate of 22,000 b/d of oil and 0.45 mcm/d of gas to the new production unit, desalter and gas gathering and gas compression station in Dehloran is envisaged.

Based on estimates made in recent years, redevelopment of this field would require $101 million plus IRR 3,533 billion.