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Posted on 10/04/2007 9:00:46 PM PDT by SandRat
BASRAH ــــ In one of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers largest electricity projects in southern Iraq, cluster pump electrical substations are being renovated in a $76 million effort to help increase oil field production in the North Rumaylah Oil Field.
“The Basrah Cluster Pump Stations are 10 electrical substations in total. They are a part of the overall oil infrastructure and one of the biggest and most costly challenges,” said Shawn Russell, deputy regional manager with the Gulf Region Division electricity sector.
The aim is to bring reliable power to the water injection facilities located within the North Rumaylah Oil Field and help increase Iraqi oil production, Russell said. “The projects are rehabilitated the existing substations which had been severely looted and damaged during the 1991 and 2003 wars.”
Russell said that while these substations are important elements of the Rumaylah oil field infrastructure, they will also provide employment opportunities and further the economic development not only of the Basrah area but the entire country. “An important component of each project is the training of operations and maintenance personnel,” he said. The training will develop individual’s skills and increase the Iraqis’ ability to sustain the facilities.
Army Maj. Rick Smith, operations officer with Basrah Oil Area Office, Gulf Region South district said the rehabilitation of the 10 cluster pump stations electrical systems is the biggest USACE electrical project in the Southern region of Iraq.
“USACE is working on various projects to ramp up oil production for Iraq and help improve its economy,” he explained. “Right now Iraq has the world’s second largest proven oil reserves. According to oil industry experts, new explorations could probably raise Iraq’s reserves to 200+ billion barrels of high-grade crude, extraordinary cheap to produce.”
Tom Eidson, chief of Engineering and Construction for the Gulf Region South district said,
“Improvements at these projects help in the recovery of oil infrastructure and contribute [ to the nationwide production capacity of ] 3 million barrels of crude per day.’’
Work consisted of general maintenance, replacement of damaged transformers and switch gear, and building new control rooms, high voltage switch gear rooms and guard houses, he said.
Eidson explained that the main objectives of the rehabilitation projects are to create a strong and reliable source of income for Iraq, improve Iraqi living conditions and create new opportunities for employment. The project also hired local villagers which helped them make money for their families.
Smith said that “Iraq’s economy is dominated by crude oil production and GRS has been working to improve the country’s ability to enhance oil production through the renovations of key components of the oil infrastructure.
“Basrah is the second largest city in Iraq and Iraqi officials and oil experts believe that completing the reconstruction of oil infrastructure will put the province into competitive alignment with similar Middle East cities,” he continued.
“We are making a big difference here in Iraq,” Smith said “This country was war torn for more than 25 years and the people are tired of it. They want their freedom; they want to be self sufficient. We are putting the country back together to self govern.”
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