Partners on Iran’s Yadavaran oil field in the Khouzestan province are yet to award construction and management contracts for early production facilities, amid ongoing speculation over the development.

According to some sources in Iran, China’s Sinopec, which has a 51 per cent stake in the $2bn development, has sought financial compensation from state-owned National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) over the delays.  

Sinopec tendered eight engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) deals in early 2009 along with a project management consultancy (PMC) deal.

Bids were submitted in July after the Sinopec and NIOC extended the EPC period and asked bidding firms to include extra facilities, such as offices and staff accommodation, and were expected to be opened the same month (MEED 9:7:10).

Bidding firms maintain that they are in contact with the Chinese firm.

“Sinopec has not awarded any of EPCs or supervision project yet, but they have held several meetings with bidders so far, asking for various confirmations,” says a source at one bidding firm.

The field contains 18.3 billion barrels of crude oil, of which 3.2 billion barrels are considered recoverable.

The first phase of development is expected to produce up to 85,000 barrels a day (b/d) by 2016, but the construction of early production facilities is already running a year behind schedule.