Dubai's Al Jalila oilfield to be operational in 2011

Dubai: The Media Office of the Dubai Government said Friday that the commercial production of oil from the newly discovered Al Jalila offshore oilfield could begin in 2011.

The new oilfield, named after the daughter of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, will be the fifth producing fields in Dubai since oil was discovered in the 1960s.

Research and initial exploration in the new oilfield off the coast of Dubai predicted the possibility of full-scale commercial production within a year, said a statement from the Media Office.

The new field should "notably increase the production of crude in Dubai, whose current oil reserves are about 4 billion barrels," the official statement said, adding that it could help the emirate boost electricity output.

"This important discovery will provide an impetus to the various sectors of the economy of Dubai, more so because the emirate intends to increase its output of electricity to 10,000 megawatts in 2012, against 7,500 megawatts at present," the statement said.