The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait’s jointly operated Khafji oil field is expected to produce 320,000 oil barrels per day at the end of 2020, the local media reported. The announcement was made after the Kingdom signed a deal with Kuwait on resuming oil production in Khafji oil field, which is located in a shared border region.
The two OPEC countries stalled production in Khafji and Wafra oil fields five years ago. The Wafra unit is another jointly operated oil field of theirs. Prior to the Khafji shutdown, the output was 500,000 barrels per day, which is equal to 0.5 percent of the world’s oil supply, the local media reported.
Previously, the two countries had dispute over the partitioned Neutral Zone that has now come to an end. Saudi Aramco President and Chief Executive Amin Nasser said in a statement, “With the signing of this new accord, both parties have reached a consensus that now is the right time to resume production in this zone.”
The neutral zone sprawls across over 5,700 square kilometres. A treaty between Kuwait and the Kingdom led to the creation of the neutral zone in 1922. Khafji is operated by Aramco Gulf Operations Company (AGOC), a subsidiary of Saudi Aramco and Kuwait’s Gulf Oil Company.
The oil output in the Khafji oil field is shared equally between Kuwait and the Kingdom. Since 2015, the countries have held several private meetings with regard to signing an agreement over sovereignty issues. Earlier this year, they have initiated fresh talks, Bloomberg reported.