NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania, Sept. 2 (UPI) -- The operators of Mauritania's southern Atlantic offshore Chinguetti oil field expect to double production by the end of the year.
According to Chinguetti's operator, Malaysia's Petronas oil company, production from the Chinguetti is predicted to increase from 4,000 barrels per day to 8,000 barrels of oil a day by the end of the year.
The Chinguetti oil field, lying at a depth of a half-mile, was discovered by Australian company Woodside Petroleum in 2001. A smaller oil field, Tevet, was discovered in the same area in 2005.
Chinguetti's reserves, while only estimated at 123 million barrels, nevertheless represent Mauritania's first commercial oil discovery, potentially opening the country's offshore waters for oil and natural gas exploration.
In 2006 the Chinguetti field began production, using a Floating Offshore Storage and Offloading vessel. Initial production of 75,000 barrels per day began to decline due to geological complexity and in November 2006 Woodside Petroleum issued a statement downsizing the Chinguetti field's reserves from 123 million to 53 million barrels.
