Operations
Gulf Keystone Petroleum is the operator of the Shaikan Field, situated around 60 km to the north-west of Erbil, the largest city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and covering an area of 280 km². The Company has a Production Sharing Contract with the Kurdistan Regional Government and has an 80% working interest in the Shaikan licence.
PF-1
| First oil | |
|---|---|
| SH-1 | September 2010 |
| SH-3 | November 2011 |
| SH-4 | March 2014 |
| SH-7 | December 2014 |
| SH-8 | March 2015 |
| SH-9 | December 2020 |
| SH-15 | April 2022 |
PF-2
| First oil | |
|---|---|
| SH-2 | June 2014 |
| SH-5 | June 2014 |
| SH-10 | December 2014 |
| SH-11 | April 2015 |
| SH-12 | November 2019 |
| SH-13 | December 2021 |
| SH-14 | December 2021 |
| SH-16 | December 2022 |
| SH-17 | February 2023 |
| SH-18 | August 2023 |
Shaikan – a giant, long-life field with a proven track record of low-cost production and significant growth potential
The Shaikan Field is one of the largest oil discoveries in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. It has been in production for over 10 years, having produced over 145 million stock tank barrels (“MMstb”) as at 26 August 2025. Gross 2P reserves were internally estimated at 443 MMstb as at 31 December 2024, representing a reserves life of around 30 years based on 2024 gross average production of 40,689 bopd.
Field overview
- Located c.60km north-west of Erbil in the north-west Zagros fold-belt
- One of the largest oil fields in Kurdistan by reserves and production
- Two production facilities with total processing capacity of c.60,000 bopd and pipeline & truck export capacity
- Proven production track record: cumulative production to date of >145 MMstb from the Jurassic reservoir
- Significant growth potential, with material oil volumes in the Jurassic, Triassic and Cretaceous formations
- Rigorous focus on maintaining low-cost production, with gross operating costs per barrel of $4.2/bbl in H1 2025
Key information
- Gulf Keystone interest: 80%
- Partner: MOL 20%
- Discovered: August 2009
- Production start: July 2013
Track record & performance
The Shaikan Field Production Sharing Contract (“PSC”) was awarded in 2007, with oil discovered in 2009 through the SH-1 well and first commercial production achieved in July 2013. Since then, over 145 MMstb of oil has been produced with the Company delivering profitable production growth. Following the Iraq-Türkiye Pipeline (“ITP”) closure in March 2023 and suspension of crude exports from Kurdistan, the Company temporarily ceased production from the Shaikan Field from 13 April 2023 to 19 July 2023, from which point sales were restarted to the local Kurdistan market. Production recovered in 2024 to average 40,689 bopd on a gross basis and averaged 44,100 bopd in H1 2025. On 27 September 2025, international crude exports from Kurdistan and the Shaikan Field restarted via the ITP following the signing of agreements with the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Federal Government of Iraq.