BAGHDAD, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- In southern Iraq's Maysan Province, the Halfaya oilfield now stands as a bustling modern energy hub.
Over 600 oil and water wells operate day and night alongside three oil and gas central processing facilities, a gas treatment plant, and several high-pressure water injection pump stations, auxiliary power stations, and water treatment plants.
Yet just over a decade ago, this site was nothing more than a silent, barren wilderness.
As one of Iraq's mega oilfields, Halfaya boasts abundant geological reserves. Yet, due to complex extraction challenges, chronic underfunding, and technological constraints, it remained largely undeveloped for years, with daily output below 10,000 barrels.
That landscape shifted dramatically in 2009, when PetroChina Company Limited, alongside its partners, secured the operational rights for the oilfield.
"Today, Halfaya's peak daily production has surpassed 400,000 barrels, and its cumulative oil and gas production equivalent exceeded 100 million tons over the past five years, making it one of Iraq's vital energy backbones," said Cai Lei, development department manager of PetroChina Halfaya.
PetroChina Halfaya has also embedded environmental sustainability into every stage of the oilfield's lifecycle. In the past, associated gas extracted alongside crude oil was largely burned off through flares, wasting resources and polluting the environment.
To address this, the company spearheaded the construction of the Halfaya Gas Processing Plant (GPP), Iraq's first large-scale integrated oil and gas utilization project, which began operations in June 2024.
"The plant processes up to three billion cubic meters of associated gas annually, yielding around 2.25 billion cubic meters of clean natural gas for local power plants to generate about five billion kilowatt-hours of electricity," said Zhang Yousen, president of the Middle East Branch of China Petroleum Engineering and Construction Corporation, which undertook the construction of the facility.
"It has not only extinguished long-burning flares but also effectively alleviated severe summer power shortages in the region," Zhang said.
Cooperation extends beyond infrastructure and technology. PetroChina Halfaya employs more than 2,000 local employees, with Iraqi nationals making up over 80 percent of the workforce.
Supported by the "Iraq Youth Training Program," the company has established a comprehensive mentorship mechanism and a localized talent development and promotion system, training Iraqi engineers and managers through on-the-job training and advanced study in China.
Iraqi geological engineer Ameer Lateef Lafta mastered advanced geological modeling under his Chinese mentor, drastically improving drilling success rates. Meanwhile, female engineer Raneem Taghlub Kadhim grew into a key specialist in reservoir dynamic analysis under the guidance of Chinese experts.
"Chinese enterprises don't just teach us how to operate; they patiently explain the underlying logic of every technical standard, helping young people master advanced technologies and enhancing our country's internal momentum for development," said Iraqi petroleum engineer Hayder Abdul Zahra. ■
