Iraqi Drilling Company completes 4,152m horizontal well in East Baghdad

A wide-angle, elevated overview captures an entire land-based oil exploration drilling site near Erbil in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. The symmetrical composition centers on the towering drilling mast, surrounded by a comprehensive base camp including modular living quarters, support vehicles, storage tanks, and heavy machinery across the arid landscape. Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) — Technical and engineering crews from the state-owned Iraqi Drilling Company (IDC) have completed drilling operations on horizontal oil well EBS-157 in the South East Baghdad oil field, reaching a total measured depth of 4,152 meters, the company announced on Wednesday, September 2, 2026. Executed under the directives of Minister of Oil Bassem Mohammed Khudair Al-Abbadi and supervised by IDC Director General Mohammed Hantoosh Asad Al-Ozairjawi, the project represents a technical milestone in deploying advanced directional drilling within structurally complex reservoirs. Technical Specifications and Drilling Parameters Rig Deployment: Executed utilizing the IDC-36 drilling rig, operating with a rated capacity of 1,500 horsepower (HP). Trajectory Profile: Drilled horizontally with a maximum deviation inclination reaching 90.31 degrees, maximizing reservoir contact within the target formation. Subsurface Engineering: Tailored to address the geological characteristics and pressure profiles of the South East Baghdad field in full adherence to international engineering standards. Operational Scope: Forms part of an ongoing multi-well development contract signed with China’s EBS (ZhenHua Oil subsidiary operator) to drill 17 oil wells, carried out in technical collaboration with COSL (China Oilfield Services Limited). Project & Technical Breakdown ParameterSpecificationOperational RelevanceWell IdentifierEBS-157Development production wellField LocationSouth East Baghdad FieldCentral Iraq heavy/medium crude expansionTotal Measured Depth4,152 MetersDeep horizontal reachMax Inclination Angle90.31°Fully horizontal reservoir navigationDrilling Rig & PowerIDC-36 (1,500 HP)Heavy-duty land rig assetOperating PartnersEBS (Operator) & COSL17-well development campaign Director General Al-Ozairjawi affirmed that the Iraqi Drilling Company continues to upgrade its technical capacity across a diverse fleet of drilling and workover rigs. By executing complex horizontal, directional, and deep vertical profiles using domestic engineering cadres, IDC aims to reduce dependence on external contractors and accelerate upstream field development plans set by the Ministry of Oil.