TEHRAN, Jul. 18 (MNA) � In time with falling crude prices to below 50 dollars a barrel, oil and gas well drilling in Iran has experienced an increase since the beginning of current Iranian year (began March 20).


Despite the fact that oil prices have dropped to below 50 dollars per barrel, drilling of developmental, exploratory�and maintenance oil and gas wells has been escalated in Iran over the past few months.

Since the beginning of the current Iranian calendar year, more than 1000 meters of oil and gas wells have been drilled while in the meantime a new drilling rig has been added to the fleet of Iranian rigs.

Corporate Planning Director of National Iranian Drilling Company (NIDC) Naser Gholipour said a total of 74 drilling rigs are active in the country�s oil industry which have increased the length of Iran�s oil and gas rigs to more than 103 thousand meters.

The official, while pointing to drilling of 57 new oil and gas wells in the current Iranian year, asserted �in the meantime, 21 developmental-descriptive, one exploratory as well as 35 maintenance wells have been built.�

Gholipour further estimated that two more drilling rigs will be added to the current fleet before September.

In the first week of July, prices of Iran�s light and heavy oil faced a slight decline similar to the earlier week decreasing�to below 45 dollars with light oil being $ 44.68 and heavy oil residing at $ 42.98.

By Mehr News Agency