Oil Fields - Described and Discovered
Oil fields may be described as regions where there is an abundance of petroleum present in underground reservoirs. Multiple oil wells are drilled and operated to extract the petroleum from the reservoirs. At present the total amount of oil fields in the world are estimated to be about 40,000. Oil fields are frequently located in hard to reach areas. Therefore the people who work there needs to be provided with proper housing, equipment, electricity and water. This often proves to be a costly and complicated undertaking.
Oil fields are normally covered with various structures and equipment such as drilling rigs, pump jacks and pipes. Furnaces and stacks for burning off excess natural gas may also be seen if the gas cannot be used for other purposes. A big infrastructure is vital for extracting crude oil from oil fields. One of the largest oil fields in the world is the Ghawar Field in Saudi Arabia. Another large one is the Burgan Field in Kuwait. They are each estimated to contain oil in excess of 60 billion barrels.
The oil reserves of oil fields are an important aspect in the world of today. These reserves are the estimated amounts of petroleum that can be recovered under current economic and operating conditions from different oil fields. This normally includes conventional oil while excluding coal and shale derived oil. Usually only a portion of the total amount of oil in a reservoir can be extracted. This is due to limitations imposed by the reservoir's underground structure and existing petroleum extraction technology. This is known as the recovery factor of a specific oil field.
Members of OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) hold about 60% to 70% of the global oil reserves. They therefore may have a significant impact upon the price of petroleum. The primary goal of OPEC is to determine ways of promoting the member's oil interests and to try and stabilize oil prices on the international market while earning a profit. OPEC has received negative feedback in the past because of their ability to influence the global oil market. It seems that the biggest oil fields have already been discovered, although Antarctica still remains largely uncertain in terms of petroleum exploration. Oil fields continue to be valuable assets for the industrialized nations of the world.
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