Iran’s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad announced on Monday the discovery of large gas and oil reserves in the Pazan field in the southern province of Fars, describing it as a significant step toward addressing the country’s future energy shortages.According to Paknejad, exploration operations in the Pazan field have revealed an estimated 10 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas in place.“If we assume a 70% recovery factor, this equals about 7 tcf of extractable gas — roughly the equivalent of 7,000 days, or 17 to 18 years, of production from a single South Pars phase,” he explained.The discovery adds 10 tcf to Iran’s total proven gas reserves. After nearly eight years of halted exploration, drilling of the second exploratory well resumed and was recently completed, leading to the latest findings, Paknejad noted.Oil reserves foundIn addition to its substantial gas potential, the minister said that exploration teams from the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) have, for the first time, entered a horizontal layer estimated to contain at least 200 million barrels of crude oil. “Further studies could reveal even larger volumes,” he said.The development contract for the Pazan gas and oil field has already been awarded, and operational work is expected to begin soon. Production from the field is projected to start within 40 months, Paknejad added.Iran, the world’s second-largest holder of natural gas reserves, expects the newly discovered field to help offset supply shortages and strengthen its long-term energy security, he said. (ICE TEHERAN)

Fonte notizia: IRAN DAILY