The Shana agency said Oil Minister Masud Mir-Kazemi attended the opening, which raises the field’s total output to around 160,000 barrels per day (bpd) from first phase production of around 50,000 bpd.
Iran’s total output has been running at around 3.75 million bpd in recent months, according to latest data from the Platt’s industry newsletter.
The second phase of Darkhovin was developed by a consortium led by Italy’s ENI, which signed a 1.3-billion-dollar contract, making it the largest Western firm operating in Iran. ENI is now expected to leave Iran shortly.
Iran’s needs oilfield development like this one just to keep up with the natural decline in output from its aging oilfields. Specialists say the natural decline is at least 300,000 bpd in most years, with declines exceeding 500,000 bpd in some years.