Oil & gas news

DRILLING ON "INAM" SUSPENDED

Drilling of the first exploratory well on "Inam" (ANX-1) has been temporarily suspended, according to BP, project operator. The work has been stopped at the depth of 4,442 meters due to high well pressure. To ensure a complete safety of drilling operations, the drilling will from now onwards be carried out off the "Istiglal" drilling rig, as opposed to "Dada Gorgud" used hitherto.

Drilling will be resumed in mid-summer, as "Istiglal" is currently being leased by "Chevron" in drilling on "Absheron".

The project depth of ANX-1 in 5,025 meters with water depth of 137.

Participating in the "Inam" contract are BP with 25%, Shell with 25% and SOCAR with 50%.

234,500 TONS OF OIL PRODUCTS EXPORTED IN JANUARY

In January of 2001, 74,700 tons of crude and 93,800 tons of oil products were exported by SOCAR's foreign economic relations section, or 24.8% over December 2000. Also exported in January were 54,596 tons of diesel, 23,868 tons of aviation kerosene and 15,305 tons of automobile gasoline.

66,000 tons of oil were exported in January through SOCAR's "AzerNeftYag" production unit: 55,800 tons of diesel, 8,200 tons of kerosene, 55 tons of lubricants and 1,800 tons of naphthalene.

ISO-9002 CERTIFICATION UNIQUE ACCOLADE FOR RAMCO SERVICES

Ramco Oil Services Limited, the wholly-owned tubular and pipeline services division of Ramco Energy plc. announced last Wednesday that its Ramco Tubular Services Badentoy facility at Portlethen, Aberdeen, has been awarded ISO-9002 certification.

The certification represents a unique achievement within the Oil Service's market, as the division now has accreditation for the full range of its services at Badentoy, including oilfield tubular refurbishment and inventory (stock) management.

IRANIAN GAS SUPPLIES AGREED UPON

A SOCAR working group led by the head of the foreign investment section Valeh Alasgarov held talks in Tehran on February 13 over Iranian gas supplies to Azerbaijan (on the border in Astara and in Nakhchivan), SOCAR said Monday.

The parties have agreed that Baku will send its proposals pertaining to the volume and terms of supplies to Iran. Both parties are determined to complete the talks shortly on mutually acceptable terms and sign the agreement on Iranian gas supplies to Azerbaijan.

The Iranian party, in turn, has taken tremendous interest in Azeri Shah-Daniz gas supplies to Iran. The negotiators have agreed that Iran will too forward its proposals on volumes and timing of the supplies in the near future.

DANES INTERESTED IN PURIFYING OIL-STAINED WATERS

Royal Danish Consulate intends to take part in purification of oil-stained waters on the Absheron peninsula and has approached SOCAR and the State Committee for Ecology in this regard.

The company can start talks with the government after studying the oil-polluted lakes in the Bibi-Heybat settlement in the vicinity of Baku. According to a SOCAR source, the Danish company is primarily interested in how saturated the water is with oil. If it is below 25 milliliters per liter of polluted water, the work will be unprofitable. Therefore, the company is planning of examining the area.

EXXONMOBIL PUTS EIA ON PUBLIC DISCUSSIONS

ExxonMobil has completed preparation of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the drilling area of the first exploration well on "Oguz" prospect. The document will be put on public discussions at the Rashid Behbydov Theater on February 28, ExxonMobil, project operator, told Azernews Thursday.

SOCAR, State Committee for Ecology and some ecological NGOs will take part in the discussion.

TRANSNAFTA RESUMES GAS SUPPLIES

Russian "Transnafta" resumed gas supplies to Azerbaijan Sunday, SOCAR told Azernews. The supplies were suspended last week because of the misunderstanding between the company and Turkmen government following the failure of the Russian company to clear its arrears.

Under the agreement between "Transnafta" and Azerbaijan, the former is to supply 1.5 billion cubic meters of gas before the end of this season.

Another Russian company, "ITERA", is also sending gas to the republic.

FIRST WELL ON ABSHERON REACHES 3,000-METER MARK

The first exploratory well being drilled on "Absheron" prospect has reached the footage of 3,000 meters. Operations are progressing on schedule, according the "Chevron", project operator.

The drilling is likely to complete in summer. The designed well depth is to be 6,700 meters, while the "Istiglal" semi-submersible drilling rig is capable of reaching the depth working in 520 meters of water.

"Chevron" holds a 30% interest in the PSA, TotalElfFina 20% and SOCAR 50%. Throughout the exploration period, 60% of the SOCAR investment share is funded by "Chevron" and 40% by TotalElfFina.