PetroChina-led operations push Iraqi oilfield to record output

The West Qurna-1 oilfield in Iraq, one of the world's largest oilfields, has reached a production milestone in PetroChina's first year as the lead contractor.

Located 50 kilometers northwest of Basra in southern Iraq, the West Qurna-1 oilfield holds geological reserves of 10 billion tons, with an estimated remaining recoverable amount of 3.06 billion tons. It's annual output of crude oil exceeds 25 million tons.

PetroChina, one of China's major oil and gas producers and distributors, replaced ExxonMobil as the lead contractor for the West Qurna-1 oilfield, holding the largest stake, with development officially kicking off on Jan 1, 2024.

Since then, PetroChina has helped steadily increase production at the oilfield to 550,000 barrels per day.

The Iraqi government has given credit to PetroChina for Iraq's energy development sector.

"The oilfield is currently being developed by PetroChina, which has made significant efforts to continue its development, increasing its daily production to 550,000 barrels. The company also prioritizes regional public welfare, delivering benefits to the local community by rebuilding roads, providing essential services, and creating more jobs in the area," said Hayyan Abdul Ghani, Iraqi deputy prime minister for energy affairs and minister of oil.

Looking ahead, the oilfield is aiming for further production increases.

"With the help of PetroChina, we have witnessed significant progress in both oilfield production and local livelihoods. The company has also provided services to local communities living near the oilfield. There have been notable improvements in the oilfield's development plans, production capacity, and crude oil quality. We are confident that we will ultimately achieve a daily production of 800,000 barrels, and even reach 1.2 million barrels," said Bassem Al-Ghalabi, deputy general manager of Basra Oil Company.

PetroChina-led operations push Iraqi oilfield to record output

The World Health Organization (WHO) is providing vigorous support for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in its response to an outbreak of Ebola caused by the Bundibugyo species of the virus.

On Thursday, a UN plane carrying supplies from the WHO arrived in Bunia, one of the affected areas in the country's northeast. Among the provisions were medicines and protective equipment for health workers, as well as tents that were set up outside a local referral hospital to facilitate triage of up to 60 incoming patients.

The response is also aiming to strengthen disease surveillance, contact tracing, clinical preparedness and management, and community engagement.

Urgency is mounting as the the Ebola outbreak in the DRC and Uganda spreads rapidly, with more than 900 suspected cases and over 200 suspected deaths, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the WHO warned on Monday.

Addressing a high-level virtual ministerial meeting, Africa CDC Director General Jean Kaseya said that since the DRC declared its 17th Ebola outbreak on May 15, a total of 906 suspected cases and 204 probable deaths have been recorded.

A total of 106 cases have been laboratory-confirmed across the two affected countries, including five in Uganda, all linked to imported cases from the DRC, he said.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned over the rapid spread of the outbreak, underscoring the WHO's decision on Friday to upgrade its risk assessment from high to very high at the national level in the DRC.

The Ebola virus is highly contagious and can cause symptoms including fever, vomiting, diarrhea, generalized pain or malaise, and in severe cases, internal and external bleeding. According to the WHO, Ebola fatality rates vary depending on the viral subtype.

WHO provides support for DRC response to Ebola outbreak