The Organisations of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (Oapec) has unveiled that 34 new oil and 10 new natural gas discoveries were made last year, said a report.

 

The most prominent oil discovery was made in Hassi Messaoud, an eastern region of Algeria, estimated at 1.3 billion barrels, said the Emirates News Agency (WAM) report.

 

The highlight natural gas discovery was the Al-Shimal field in Qatar, which is estimated at 71 billion cu m of natural gas, it said.

 

The Oapec member states have also began work on several key projects during the year, including the Karan offshore project in Saudi Arabia, which is set to produce 4.2 million cu m of gas per day, and another heavy crude oil project at the Manifa refinery, also in Saudi Arabia, which is expected to produce an estimated half a million barrels per day, said the report.

 

The Manifa project will reach a daily production capacity of 900,000 barrels of oil and approximately 65,000 barrels of condensate, in addition to 2.55 million cu m of gas, it said.

 

Many oil and gas reserve specialists from international agencies and a US geological survey have pointed out that the region still has great potential for more discoveries, it added.