With an area of more than 1,300 square kilometers, South Pars is one of the world’s largest natural gas fields. Developing it leveraged all our know-how to build an industrial complex in a region that lacked the appropriate infrastructure. We deployed innovative technical solutions to bring the onshore and offshore facilities on stream in record time and on budget.

A Human and Technical Exploit

In 1997, as part of a multiphase development process, the Iranian authorities awarded Phases 2 & 3 to Total South Pars, a Total subsidiary, and two partners, Gazprom and Petronas. Four-and-a-half years later, Phases 2 & 3 were the first of the planned 14 development phases to come on stream.

Total South Pars and its partners invested more than $2 billion in what is to date the largest gas project in the Middle East.

At end-2002, with the project now operational, operatorship was transferred to South Pars Gas Company, a subsidiary of Iran’s state-owned gas company.

Enhanced Multiphase Experience

South Pars leveraged all of the multiphase expertise that our engineers had acquired on projects worldwide, from the North Sea to Qatar. For this development we chose to tie the production platforms into onshore installations using large-diameter, 105-kilometer-long multiphase pipelines, a bold move that had never been attempted over such a long distance and that demanded exceptional proficiency in multiphase transportation. This technology significantly scaled back the offshore installations required and enhanced the project’s economic feasibility.

A World-Class Industrial Complex

The vast complex was built on a 150-hectare site in the desert, where 7 million cubic meters of earth were moved. Some 130,000 cubic meters of concrete were poured and 2,200 kilometers of cables and 25,000 metric tons of pipes were laid for 130,000 metric tons of equipment.

The utilities supply the installations with 160 metric tons per hour of steam, 120 MW of electricity and 4,600 cubic meters per hour of seawater to meet operating requirements.

The gigantic construction site, which in just 42 months generated some 50 million man-hours of work, involved more than 50 Iranian subcontractors and up to 11,000 people of 21 different nationalities during peak periods. The camp covered 50 hectares, in addition to the 150 hectares for the plant and 100 hectares for the industrial park.

A Model Safety Process
 
The lost time injury rate was 1.23 per million man-hours for both drilling programs, thanks to the combined, continuous commitment of management, supervisory teams and contractors. A total of 6,000 drills and training sessions were held to ensure that procedures were respected and to enhance employee awareness.

Expertise and Skills Transfer
 
Skills transfer was a decisive factor for the future of the South Pars project. Iran had been closed to international companies for around 20 years, and therefore had not had access to technological innovations in drilling and operating equipment. Accordingly, once design engineering began, a dedicated team deployed a program to train young university graduates as future production operators, with 650 people participating since early 2000. Experienced operators from other facilities also received special training.

Integration into the Host Community
 
To facilitate the project’s integration into the host community, Total financed medical facilities and air conditioning and furniture for two health care centers and an orphanage. A school was also fully refurbished. Retention barriers built to prevent mudslides from the Zagros Mountains also protect the installations and local residents.

Tomorrow, South Pars 11
 
In meeting this technical and human challenge in difficult circumstances, we demonstrated our ability to complete world-class projects on budget and on schedule. This performance has strengthened our position as a key player in gas and in energy in general in the Middle East, a region where we have operated for 75 years and are a partner in seven countries.

It also made us one of the foremost foreign oil companies partnering Iran. This ranking looks set to be further consolidated in the future, since we have signed a memorandum of understanding with state-owned NIOC that is the framework for the planned Pars LNG liquefied natural gas (LNG) project. The MOU, which has to be approved by the relevant Iranian authorities, structures the relationship between Pars LNG, responsible for liquefaction operations, and South Pars Block 11, awarded to Total (60%) and Petronas (40%), which will provide the feed gas for the planned liquefaction facility.