SOCAR, Total sign agreement on big offshore gas field

The agreement was signed following a meeting between SOCAR President Rovnag Abdullayev and Total CEO Patrick Pouyanné in Baku, according to the message.

During the meeting, Abdullayev said the effective cooperation between SOCAR and Total as part of the joint oil and gas projects plays a special role in regional and international energy security.

In his turn, Pouyanné expressed interest in further cooperation with Azerbaijan, which has broad prospects, the message said.

Total follows closely the projects implemented in Azerbaijan and will continue to study new investment opportunities, as well as invest in oil and gas operations in the country, said Pouyanné.

During the meeting, Total expressed intention to take advantage of participation in other oil and gas projects in Azerbaijan, including the development of the potential Umid-Babek structure.

According to forecasts, the first gas from the Absheron gas and condensate field, discovery of which was announced in 2011, will be received in late 2021 and early 2022.

Absheron field’s reserves are estimated at 350 billion cubic meters of gas and 45 million tons of condensate, according to SOCAR.

Participants of the Absheron project are SOCAR (40 percent), and French companies Total (40 percent) and Engie (20 percent).