Azerbaijan starts to look for onshore oil sources

By AzerNews

The Geology Institute of Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS) started oil exploration in the Yevlakh and Mingachevir regions.

The main goal of the exploration is to verify the existence of oil in this region, PhD of Geology and Mineralogy and senior research fellow of ANAS Geology Institute Samir Mammadov told AzerNews on January 24.

"The geological exploration work carried out in the area in 1940s-1960s confirmed the existence of oil. However, exploration was not conducted to the end. Now, we aim to continue the exploration with new methods," he said.

Geological explorations were carried out in the Ajinohur mountain uplift, and this region was estimated to have both oil and gas. Exploration wells were drilled there, but researches didn't get the necessary results due to the poor development of scientific technologies.

The work is conducted by the Geodynamics and Seismology Department of the Geology Institute through a grant allocated by Azerbaijan's state energy company SOCAR.

Mammadov went on to note that the geologists will start working with a new method, i.e., exploration geodynamics, which is connected to the physical areas of Earth.

"We will use several methods there, including GPS and radiometric methods, and we will study the magnetic and thermic fields," Mammadov stressed.

Algorithms and the theoretical basis of forecasting oil and gas zones are currently being developed by applying the geodynamical method.

Explorations are conducted on the basis of exploration geodynamics which is a new method. Information obtained as a result of modern geodynamical moves from geophysical, radiochemical, and heating zones, deformation process, stereoscopic, and temporal changes as a result of fluid dynamics is used in oil exploration.

The anomalies in the geodynamic processes occurring in the Earth's crust are observed with this research method.

Mammadov said If the results are positive, the state bodies and structures will be interested in continuing the exploration work in other territories of Azerbaijan,.

Researches for the detection of anomalies will also be carried out in areas near the Ajinohur mountain uplift, including Shaki. The exploration of oil fields will be possible only on the basis of the observation of anomalies.

The implementation of the two-year project started in October 2013.