BP plans to drill new exploration wells

Giant energy company BP continues its successful cooperation with Azerbaijan in the development of gas fields.

BP plans to drill six new exploration wells in Azerbaijan in 20192020, BP Azerbaijan Vice President Bakhtiyar Aslanbayli told Trend.

He said that four wells are planned to be drilled this year and two wells next year.

"The results will depend on the drilling process," he noted. "We expect positive results regarding the Shafag-Asiman field. Perhaps, gas reserves at that field will be the same as at the Shah Deniz field."

Depending on the results, a medium-term plan will be prepared, Aslanbayli added.

BP is one of the world's most renowned oil and gas suppliers, which has been managing large projects for exploration, development and transportation of oil and gas fields in Azerbaijan for 26 years safely and reliably. Since 1992, the company participated in a series of the upstream project in Azerbaijan together with SOCAR.

BP Azerbaijan is operator of ACG, Shahdeniz, Shallow Water Absheron Peninsula, Shafag-Asiman and Gobustan fields.

Shah Deniz 2 is the starting point of the new Southern Gas Corridor, which will deliver Caspian resources directly to European markets for the first time.

So far, the total gas production from the Shah Deniz field has reached 100 billion cubic meters. Since 2006, more than 196 million barrels of condensate have been produced in the Shah Deniz field in total.

Its reserves are estimated at 1.2 trillion cubic meters of gas and 240 million tons of condensates. Within the second stage of the field development, the volume of gas production can be increased to 24 billion cubic meters per year, according to forecasts.

The project participants are BP (operator - 28.8 percent), AzSD (10 percent), SGC Upstream (6.7 percent), Petronas (15.5 percent), LUKOIL (10 percent), NIKO (10 percent) and TPAO (19 percent).

SOCAR and BP signed a contract on the Shafag-Asiman block of fields for a period of 30 years in October 2010. The exploration period is four years with possibility of extension for three more years. Two wells are to be drilled within the first phase. Two more wells will be drilled within the second phase, if necessary.

In the operational period the sides will implement joint operatorship within the project. Shared participation in the contract between BP and SOCAR is 50 to 50 percent.

The forecasted reserves of the Shafag-Asiman block stand at 500 billion cubic meters of gas and 65 million tons of condensate.

The block is located 125 kilometers to the south-east of Baku. It is located at a depth of 650-800 meters with the depth of the reservoir at 7,000 meters.