TEHRAN – The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has launched the development of the newly discovered Pazan oil and gas field, which officials say could play a key role in easing the country’s energy imbalance by supplying gas to four provinces.

Mohieddin Jafari, NIOC’s director of exploration, told IRNA that a contract has been signed with a private investor to drill several wells under a 40-month development plan.

“The Pazan discovery is one of the country’s most significant new oil and gas finds, achieved after years of geological surveys and seismic studies,” he said.

Initial exploration in the region began in 2015 with a 4,000-meter well that revealed a single gas layer. Subsequent two- and three-dimensional seismic studies led to a second drilling phase, where two additional hydrocarbon layers—one oil and one gas—were discovered, alongside the initial gas zone, which turned out to be larger than earlier estimates.

The field is estimated to hold about 10 trillion cubic feet of gas in place—equivalent to around one billion cubic feet per day or 28.5 million cubic meters—which could meet the daily demand of the provinces of Bushehr, Ilam, North Khorasan, and Masjed Soleyman. “Its importance lies in its ability to reduce winter gas shortages,” Jafari noted.

He added that preliminary estimates suggest at least 200 million barrels of oil in the field, though final figures will depend on the results of a third well. “This will give us a clearer picture of the Pazan field’s long-term production capacity,” he said.

The ongoing development plan involves drilling multiple wells across the field and connecting them to gas separation and sweetening facilities for delivery to the national grid.

Jafari also said NIOC is conducting two- and three-dimensional seismic surveys in the provinces of Ilam, Kermanshah, Khuzestan, Bushehr, and Ardabil, while preparations are underway to contract surveyors for North Khorasan, South Khorasan, Razavi Khorasan, Golestan, and Gorgan by year-end.

“Our simultaneous operations across Iran’s vast onshore regions aim to deliver new discoveries to the Iranian people and strengthen the country’s energy balance,” he said, describing the Pazan field as a clear example of Iran’s untapped subsurface potential that can be transformed into economic value and energy security through consistent scientific effort.

EF/