Hanoi (VNA) – A delegation from the Vietnam National Industry–Energy Group (Petrovietnam), led by Tran Binh Minh, a member of the Members’ Council, paid a working visit to the Bir Seba oil field in Blocks 433a & 416b in Algeria on November 17.
The visit formed part of the 13th meeting of Vietnam–Algeria Intergovernmental Committee and took place ahead of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s official visit to Algeria.
Joining the delegation were Nguyen Thien Bao, General Director of the Petrovietnam Exploration Production Corporation (PVEP), a subsidiary of Petrovietnam; Pham Ngoc Khue, a member of the Board of Directors of the Petrovietnam Power Corporation (PV Power), also a Petrovietnam subsidiary; as well as leaders from the group and representatives of PVEP and PV Power.
The petroleum contract for Blocks 433a & 416b in Algeria covers a strategically located project in the Hassi Messaoud area of Ouargla province, more than 600km south of the capital, Algiers. The contract was signed in 2002 between PIDC (now PVEP) and Algeria’s state-owned oil company Sonatrach, with PVEP operating the exploration phase.
The project is managed by Groupment Bir Seba (GBRS) — a joint operating company established by PVEP, Algeria’s state-owned oil company Sonatrach, and Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production Public Co. Ltd (PTTEP) — under a production-sharing contract. The ownership split is 40% for PVEP, 35% for PTTEP and 25% for Sonatrach.
Since commencing operations in August 2015, the Bir Seba project has maintained stable and safe production, with an average output of more than 5 million per year. Cumulative production to date has approximated 62 million barrels of oil equivalent.
Under the expansion phase, the partners will consider connecting wells under EPC Package No. 6, as well as continuing further field development to increase production capacity. The project aims for cumulative output of around 114.6 million barrels, with an estimated 53.7 million barrels expected to be produced between 2025 and 2033.
The Blocks 433a & 416b project, one of Petrovietnam/PVEP’s earliest overseas investments, has helped secure stable foreign-currency revenue, strengthen energy security and make a positive contribution to the state budgets of both Vietnam and Algeria./.
