Qatar Petroleum and Total have signed an agreement to extend their partnership by 25 years on the Al Khalij field, located offshore Qatar
Mohammed bin Saleh Al Sada, minister of energy and industry for Qatar and chairman and managing director of Qatar Petroleum, signed the Heads of Agreement (HOA) with Yves-Louis Darricarrère, president, upstream, of Total.
Al Sada said, “We have been working with our long-time partner, Total, on Al Khalij field since its discovery. It has been a mutually beneficial and fruitful partnership. We are pleased to sign this new agreement to further develop the field as part of Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani’s vision to continue to prudently develop our natural resources and to increase Qatar’s hydrocarbon reserves.”
Located about 130 km east of the Qatari coast, Al Khalij field was discovered by Total in 1991. Production commenced in 1997 under an exploration and production sharing agreement (EPSA), which was signed in 1989 and is due to expire in early 2014.
Under the new HOA, Qatar Petroleum will hold a 60 per cent working interest in the field, with Total holding the remaining 40 per cent. Following the expiry of the EPSA, Total will continue to operate the field.
A signing ceremony, which was held at Qatar Petroleum’s head office in Doha, was attended by a number of senior officials from both companies.
Darricarrère said, “This new agreement exemplifies the long-standing partnerships forged with Qatar, as it reflects Total’s commitment to work hand-in-hand with Qatar Petroleum. I am delighted to see Total continuing to be recognised, not only for operational excellence in the energy sector, but also as an active member of Qatar’s community and society at large”
Total’s other commitments in Qatar include the multi-billion dollar gas projects in Ras Laffan, of which the company was one of the first participants. The company has also participated in other large developments in Qatar’s refining and petrochemicals sectors.
