Heavy oil production starts in 2018: KOC

Heavy oil production will begin in the end of the year 2018 with roughly 10 to 15 thousand barrels per day at Ratqa refinery, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) Jamal Jaafar said yesterday.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a conference and exhibition organized by the Association of Petroleum Engineers, Jaafar noted that the heavy oil production will gradually increase to 60 thousand barrels per day six months after production starts. Moreover, he underscored that KOC remains diligent to bring its grand oil production plan of churning out 4 million barrels daily by the year 2020. Speaking on KOC’s oil production capacity, he said it has the potential to reach 2.8 million barrels per day, which highly hinges on the needs of the oil market. On traditional oil production, the KOC CEO noted that it has largely dwindled, which prompted oil companies to resort to unconventional forms of oil production, as he highlighted the potential of GCC nations to create a thriving heavy oil market. The three-day conference and expo is patronized by Deputy Prime Minister, Finance Minister and Acting Oil Minister Anas Al-Saleh. —KUNA