Total and Qatar Petroleum will take over the operatorship of the giant Al-Shaheen offshore oil field for a period of 25 years beginning July 14, 2017. The field produces 300 thousand barrels of oil per day. The concession will be operated by the North Oil Company (NOC), which was established a year ago as a partnership between Total (30%) and Qatar Petroleum (70%).

“Joining Al-Shaheen is a major milestone and accomplishment in the long history of the Group’s partnership with Qatar, where we have been active for more than 80 years. The transition activities were conducted successfully thanks to the strong commitment of all parties and the deployment of the best expertise by both Total and Qatar Petroleum. I would like to thank deeply the staff and management of Maersk Oil, NOC, Qatar Petroleum and Total who all worked very hard to ensure a smooth and safe transition and handover. NOC will leverage its technical capabilities to optimize the exploitation of the complex Al-Shaheen oil field”, said Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of Total. “Total is fully committed to the development of its partnership with Qatar Petroleum both in Qatar and internationally, and is willing to further expand its cooperation in particular with new projects in Qatar.”

Located in Qatari waters 80 kilometers North of Ras Laffan, the Al-Shaheen field began production in 1994. The existing development consists of 30 platforms and 300 wells, and production from the field represents about half of Qatar’s oil production.

The first phase of the development plan of Al Shaheen, consisting of the drilling of 56 new wells, will start this summer with the mobilization of the first two rigs, with a third one to be added at the beginning of next year. This first phase will be followed by two others over the next 5 years to further develop the field.