Drilling for Black Gold

Fulfillment after Challenges: The performance of National Iranian Drilling Company (NIDC) in the past 21 years has been an acceptable one in view of international standards as well as the drilling features in Iran. Not for a single moment did the rigs stop drilling away during the eight-year war. Despite all the pressures exerted by the war on the country, not only did the production process ever come to a standstill, but drilling rigs were increased in number by 40 to 46. Technical services have greatly developed and expanded through the well-organized departments set up for this purpose. NIDC now enjoys 10 years of experience in well logging and has gained invaluable experience in horizontal drilling. Moreover, it is seeking to use these achievements to provide services for other oil-rich countries around the world.

Role of Drilling in Our Economy: The drilling industry has always served as an index for measuring the production capacity, production capability, pricing, and investment in different sectors of the oil industry. This has given rise to the largest portion of the oil industry’s budget and costs being allocated to this industry in a way that more than half of the foreign exchange budget of the National Iranian Oil Company is spent on drilling.
Naturally, if there are going to be changes in state laws, they will be toward savings in foreign currency spending, which will help solve logistic and support problems plaguing the industry in today’s world. Adopting such a stance under the current circumstances would be to the advantage of the Islamic Republic of Iran, because with the competitive and tight market resulting from the recently-closed buy-back contracts, the presence of NIDC would considerably reduce the price rates of foreign peers.
In line with this stance, NIDC sought to put forth a set of goals and schemes as key objectives for the survival and continued efficiency of the drilling industry within the oil industry family. It has done so by careful planning in all areas of operation, services and administration and by applying basic changes to its organizational structure.

Objectives

• Restructuring in NIDC

• Employing modern technology in the drilling industry and enhancing the quality of drilling services

• Presence in the international arena / devising mechanisms for participation in tenders

• Manpower training

• Safety and health

• Preserving human resources

Structural Changes: These changes were applied to enhance efficiency in drilling operations through setting up three departments, providing proper technical services, creating an atmosphere of healthy competition among operational units, and preparing the ground for presence in international markets.

Employing Modern Technology: Within a short period of time, NIDC succeeded in training its skilled work force and at the same time purchasing various machinery and equipment. Planning is under way for the purchase of other equipment, among them:

• Equipping 13 drilling rigs with top drive to speed up drilling operations

• Developing horizontal drilling to assign at least 10 new groups to such operations

• Partnership with a foreign company for utilization of well logging equipment

• Purchasing 15 cementing and acidizing units

• Purchasing 2 coiled tubing equipment

• Changing the drilling rigs’ systems from mechanical to electric (SCR) for an optimal use

• Purchasing a nitrogen injection unit

• Purchasing a mud treatment system to prevent environmental problems and a waste of mud, and to help savings on foreign currency spending for parties interested in drilling operations

International Presence: Paving the way for handling operations in oil-rich and neighboring countries and being prepared to provide side services, NIDC can consider extending its operations beyond the borders of Iran in view of its immense technical potentials.
Signing more than 50 contracts and memoranda of understanding with international companies in the areas of drilling operations, providing technical services, partnership, etc., are all indications of the fact that international companies recognize NIDC as highly capable. They also show that NIDC, having 90 years of experience in the Iranian oil industry and 20 years of drilling experience after the revolution, enjoys invaluable experience in the drilling industry and can handle drilling and well completion operations around the world. In this connection, mention can be made of the following:

NIDC’s Performance: The bright records of NIDC’s 21 years of hard work includes repair of about 1600 drilling wells and over 3,300,000 meters of drilling. Since 1989, more than 5000 operations related to technical services of drilling have been recorded, saving the country $2 billion in foreign currency spending.
Since the start of the current year (March 2000) NIDC has earned an income of $260 million on drilling operations and related services. It has received more than $110 million (Rls.8000 = $1) from companies requiring drilling operations, and has up to now saved the country $150 million in foreign currency spending.
Providing the country with the opportunity to exploit 5 million barrels of oil per day, NIDC’s untiring operations have evidently proved very economical for the country, and will force foreign companies intending to handle similar operations here to reconsider their rates.

The company’s operations show a growing trend since establishment. Compared to the First Plan, in the Second Economic Development Plan drilling operations and technical/engineering service-providing show an 11% growth in meters drilled, 20% in drilled and completed wells, and 300% in technical/engineering services. Also, NIDC’s performance in the past three-year period (1997-2000) compared to the preceding three-year period shows considerable growth.

National Iranian Drilling Company

P.O. Box: 61635-138 Ahvaz - IRAN
Tel: (+98 611) 44 21 97 , 440 151-7
Fax: (+98 611) 44 24 56 , 44 33 38
E-Mail: nidcmin@iran.com