BP has started drilling two new deep exploration wells in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea.
One of the wells will reach a depth of 7000 meters in order to open gas layers located below the deposits of the existing Shah Deniz gas field, which currently provides the bulk of gas exports from Azerbaijan.
BP press releases: https://www.bp.com/en_az/azerbaijan/home/news/press-releases/Shah-Deniz-spuds-a-new-exploration-well.html
It will take about a year to drill a well, which is expected to provide a clearer understanding of drillability, producibility and resource potential of the deeper horizons beneath the currently producing reservoirs in the eastern flank.
The second well with a depth of about 4,500 meters is aimed at promising deposits under the main oil field of Azerbaijan – Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG). The work will be completed within three months, since only well will be drilled as a sidetrack from the existing injector well.
The first well is being drilled within the framework of the existing production agreement between Azerbaijan and the consortium operating the field, which includes BP, the Azerbaijani state oil company SOCAR, the Turkish state oil company TPAO, the Iranian state oil company NICO and the Russian Lukoil.
The second well will be drilled at the field where the ACG consortium operates, which consists of BP, SOCAR, TPAO, Exxon Mobil and six other international companies jointly exporting oil to world markets.
If commercial volumes of gas are confirmed by one or both exploration wells, gas sales markets are already secured. Azerbaijan imports gas from Iran and Russia to meet both growing domestic demand and existing export contracts. Baku also intends to double its gas exports to Europe over the next five years.
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The first improved model contract for the production of hydrocarbons has been signed in Kazakhstan. It was inked by the national operator of the oil and gas industry of Kazakhstan “KazMunayGas” and the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan for the extraction of hydrocarbons at the group of fields Kalamkas Sea, Khazar, Auezov, located in the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea.
The Russian company Lukoil, one of the largest public vertically integrated oil and gas companies in the world, has been selected as a strategic partner of KazMunayGas in the field of hydrocarbon production.
KazMunayGas press release: https://www.kmg.kz/ru/press-center/press-releases/umk/
Kalamkas Sea – Khazar – Auezov is classified as a complex marine project.
The model contract for complex projects envisages the payment of US$ 32 million as a signing bonus, and attracting over US$ 6 billion of foreign directs investments. The deal also stipulates that at the start of the project’s development, 2,000 new jobs will be created.
The fields of Kalamkas sea, Khazar and Auezov are located at a distance of 60 km from the coast. According to the earlier statements by energy ministry of Kazakhstan, the recoverable reserves of the three fields are estimated at 87 million tons of oil and 86 billion cubic meters of gas.
According to OilCapital, production will begin in 2028 and will amount to 3-4 million tons per year. The development of deposits is estimated at US $5 billion. ///nCa, 7 February 2023