GE Gas compression technology selected for expansion projects in Oman

GE will provide four electric motor-driven BCL605 compressor trains to be used to boost pressure from the wells to the central processing plant in the Saih Rawl gas field. Each new train will have a capacity of 510,000 Nm3 of natural gas per hour.

The equipment will be manufactured at GE Oil & Gas facilities in Florence, Italy and shipped to the project site in March of 2008. Commercial operation is scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of 2008.

The Saih Rawl project is the first in a series of projects planned by PDO to boost wellhead pressure in the Central Oman gas fields.

GE also has been selected to provide a low-pressure and a medium-pressure centrifugal compressor and balance-of-plant equipment for the Harweel Phase 2 Zalzala enhanced oil recovery project. The equipment for this project will be manufactured at GE Oil & Gas facilities in Le Creusot, France and shipped to Oman in December of 2007. Commercial operation is scheduled for the third quarter of 2008.

Each of the new compression trains for the Harweel project will have a process gas flow rate capacity of 135 tons per hour.

"Both of these projects have strategic importance for Oman's economy, as they will help secure an uninterrupted gas supply to the customers and also will help to sustain oil production for Oman," said Claudi Santiago, GE Senior Vice President and President and CEO of GE Oil & Gas. "We are pleased that PDO has selected our compressor technology to support this important effort.

"GE already has a strong presence in Oman," Santiago added, "We have supplied LNG trains for the Qalhat plant and also have provided equipment and services for other customers in Oman. These latest projects reinforce our strong position in the natural gas industry both in the Gulf region and around the world."

Based in Muscat, Oman, PDO is the country's major exploration and production company. It accounts for about 90% of the country's crude oil production and nearly all of its natural gas supply. The company is owned by the government of Oman (60%), Shell Group (34%), Total (4%) and Partex (2%). The company's gas fields, however, are owned exclusively by the Omani government.