Iran started preliminary production in the Yadavaran oilfield in the southwest that is shared with Iraq, with the opening of a first well.
Head of the Oil Engineering and Development Company, Naji Saadouni, said production would reach 20,000 bpd by mid-March, reported news agency Shana.
Iran plans to increase the total production of the field to 180,000 bpd within three years, Shana said.
Sinopec, China's largest oil refining company, has been involved since 2007 in exploiting the Yadavaran oil field, estimated to hold 3.2 billion barrels of recoverable crude, as part of a contract worth 3.6 billion dollars.
Iran, struggling to attract annual investment of nearly US$50 billion to develop its oil and gas field capacity, decided last year to give priority to shared fields already being depleted by other countries.
This is why the Yadavaran and Azadegan oil fields, shared with Iraq, and the giant South Pars gas field, shared with Qatar, have been fast-tracked.
Second biggest producer
Iran is the second biggest producer in OPEC with 3.5 million barrels per day, 2.5 million of which are exported, bringing in up to US$100 billion last year.
