The State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) is determined to commence oil production at the Karabakh field in the near future, as stated by SOCAR Vice President Babek Huseynov during a press briefing, according to Report.
"Since the majority of our oil production comes from the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli block of fields, our primary objective is to stabilize the decline in oil production and maintain it at that level for a certain period while simultaneously developing new fields," Huseynov explained.
He emphasized that the Karabakh field holds significant promise for oil production. "Unfortunately, Equinor has left the country, but this opens up new opportunities. SOCAR has acquired their stake in this project and currently holds a 100% interest," Huseynov added.
SOCAR aims to reduce the field development timeline from the typical 7+ years to just 3-5 years, bringing new fields to the production stage more rapidly.
"However, in the case of the Karabakh field, there are already wells in place, including three exploratory and one appraisal well. Therefore, we hope that production at this field will commence swiftly," Huseynov stated.
Regarding financing field development through SOCAR's own resources, Huseynov noted the challenges in attracting investments for hydrocarbon projects, as companies prefer to invest in "green energy" projects. "Nevertheless, major companies like BP still show interest in oil and gas projects in Azerbaijan," he said.
The vice president also revealed SOCAR's interest in developing fields in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Iraq.