Total Abu AI Bukhoosh celebrates 30th anniversary
Thierry Desmarest, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of TOTAL, was present on the occasion.
The Company marked its anniversary with a celebration of 30 years of successful oil and gas production from the Abu AI Bukhoosh Site. Many diplomats, Total Senior Management and officials were among the guests as well as the employees of Total in the UAE and Total Abu AI Bukhoosh.
In his speech to mark the occasion, Desmarest spoke about the success story of Total Abu AI Bukhoosh since the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan AI Nahyan, signed the concession agreement with Total in 1972.
Desmarest said that in 1992, the first phase of Khuff gas production started, marking a new era for Total Abu AI Bukhoosh. Today, the ADMA-OPCO operated Offshore Khuff Gas Development Project is carrying out the second phase development of Khuff reserves. "When full export production will be reached, Total Abu AI Bukhoosh will become one of the largest offshore gas suppliers in the UAE," he said.
Referring to the company's early operations, Desmarest said: "When we first started operating Abu AI Bukhoosh field in 1974, its expected lifespan was just 15 years, but with the permanent support of ADNOC and SPC our fully dedicated teams have implemented state of the art know-how and technologies in a carefully planned manner, allowing Total Abu AI Bukhoosh to significantly outlive the industry's average life cycle of 15-20 years - exceeding everyone's expectations and setting an example for oil companies in the region.
"The focus of our efforts has not been limited to production, however.
Personnel safety has always been a paramount objective. Thorough dedication, method and hard work allowed our personnel to keep the incident ratio among the lowest in the industry, in spite of sour gas production in complex and ageing installations," he said.
"By pursuing ambitious, sustainable development objectives, we have committed ourselves to preserving the environment and contributing to the community development with projects for UAE Nationals and also local wildlife.
"With our Asset Integrity Management System and Sustainable Development programmes being constantly improved to meet ever increasing challenges, we can confidently envision many years of production ahead of us. By remaining at the cutting-edge of technology, we have managed to maximize production, minimize safety and environmental risks, and extend the life of our wells and production installations.
" We could not have achieved our goals without the continuous support of H.H. Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed AI Nahyan, President of United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Supreme Petroleum Council, for his vision to develop the petroleum sector in the UAE.
following the steps of the nation's late leader H.H. Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan AI Nahyan, who entrusted us with the development of the Abu AI Bukhoosh field. We are also grateful for the encouragement of General Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed AI Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Member of the Supreme Petroleum Council." Total is the world's fourth-largest international oil and gas company, operating in over 130 countries.
Total employs more than 110,000 people and in 2003 turnover totalled 1 04.7 billion euros.
Total, which has signed its first concession agreement in Abu Dhabi back in 1939, is the main partner of ADNOC in the onshore and offshore oil and gas ventures such as ADCO, ADMA-OPCO, GASCO, ADGAS, NGSCO, and in petrochemicals such as FERTIL, and has partnership with ADWEA in the TAWEELAH A 1 power plant, as well as of its newest venture with MUBADALA in the DOLPHIN Project.
In Dubai, Total is also present in offshore oil production in DPC, and in lubricants manufacturing in Jebel Ali.
Located 180 kilometres off the coast of Abu Dhabi, on the marine border between Abu Dhabi and Iran, the Abu AI Bukhoosh field is spread over 20 square kilometres within the 115 square kilometres of the Total concession area. The reservoir formations are 115 to 200 million years old.
WAM-VV 14 12 CCCCQQE