Amount of investments for Shah Deniz project demonstrates its importance

The cost of the full-scale development project [second stage] of Shah Deniz gas field in Azerbaijan's sector of the Caspian Sea is estimated at $20-22 billion, the Vice President of BP Azerbaijan Seymur Khalilov said Friday.

This funding is required not only for the construction of platforms and drilling, but also for expansion of the Sangachal terminal, the installation of compressor stations, laying of new pipelines.

Khalilov said the amount of necessary investments demonstrates the importance of the project. It should be noted that a total of $25 billion has been invested in the projects of the Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (operator BP), the first stage of the Shah Deniz field, creating Sangachal trminal, Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline and Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline.

The first gas within the second stage of development is expected to be received in 2017.
The peak production is forecasted at over 9 billion cubic meters and 50,000 barrels of condensate. According to the forecasts, gas production can be brought up to 24 billion cubic meters a year within the second stage of field development.

Shah Deniz reserves are estimated at an amount of 1.2 trillion cubic meters of gas.

The contract to develop the offshore Shah Deniz field was signed on June 4, 1996.

Participants to the agreement are: BP (operator) - 25.5 percent, Statoil Hydro - 25.5 percent, NICO - 10 percent, Total - 10 percent, LukAgip - 10 percent, TPAO - 9 percent and SOCAR-10 percent.


/Trend/