Algeria: El Merk production plateau lower than planned

Anadarko’ Petroleum’s El-Merk development has almost reached plateau production with the completion of the final parts of the surface facilities and most of the wells now drilled. However, according to Algerian media reports, energy and mines minister and acting prime minister Youcef Yousfi has ruled out the US company’s original plan to establish plateau production of 127,000 b/d of crude from the two 65,000 b/d oil production trains plus 30,000 b/d of condensate. Instead, the present plateau of 85,000 b/d of oil and 15,000 b/d of condensate is expected to be maintained for six years. The Algerian news website Maghreb Emergent cited industry sources who criticised the original production plan as being based on a now discredited policy of ‘hyper-extraction’ championed by former energy and mines minister Chakib Khelil.