SOCAR expects large gas reserves on Shafag-Asiman

SOCAR expects good results of exploratory drilling on the promising structure Shafag-Asiman in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea, SOCAR First Vice President Khoshbakht Yusifzadeh told reporters.

“In our opinion, there are gas reserves in this structure, and I think the results of the drilling will be positive and will reveal large gas reserves,” Yusifzadeh said.

In his turn, the Vice President of the exploration and development company BP-Azerbaijan Greg Riley told reporters the semi-submersible drilling rig named after Heydar Aliyev will be involved in drilling the first exploratory well on the promising structure Shafag-Asiman.

“We expect the availability of gas reserves in the promising structure Shafag-Asiman. The drilling of the first exploratory well in this area will begin in mid-2019,” he said.

“If the results of drilling yield industrial hydrocarbon reserves, then this field may become the second Shah Deniz,” he said.

As reported, the depth of the first exploratory well on the structure Shafag-Asiman will be about 6,500-7,000 meters. High pressure and high temperatures are expected here during the drilling. The sea depth in the area ranges from 600 to 800 meters. According to preliminary data, the productive stratum is about three kilometers deep, between the 5-km and 8-km depth levels.

According to SOCAR, the reserves of Shafag-Asiman are 500 bcm of gas and 65 million tons of condensate.