SHELL STARTS IRAQ

OGJ.  Royal Dutch Shell PLC has exported its first shipment of crude from Iraq's Majnoon field after surpassing its initial commercial production target. The field, operated in conjunction with South Oil Co., Malaysia's Petronas, and Missan Oil Co., is producing 210,000 b/d, said Shell.
The milestone comes just 8 months after Majnoon production was restarted by the partners following major overhauls, including clearing war munitions, upgrading safety standards, and building a greenfield central processing plant that will allow increased capacity. In that time, Shell says it has drilled 18 wells.
"The lifting of Shell's first oil shipment from Majnoon has great significance to us and our partners in the [Iraqi] government as it is a testimony to our shared progress and signals the start of Majoon's long-term journey toward generating further revenue for Iraq's economy, and as an investment in Iraq's future," said Hans Nijkamp, vice-president and chairman of Shell in Iraq.
In 2010, Iraq's Ministry of Oil signed a 20-year contract with Shell and its partners for the development of Majnoon field, one of the largest oil fields in the world. (OGJ Online, Jan. 18, 2010). Shell owns a 45% stake, Petronas 30%, and Missan 25%.
The consortium targets a production plateau of 1.8 million b/d of oil from its Majnoon operations.