Hungarian MOL buys stake in ACG and BTC

Chevron Corporation announced that its affiliate companies sold their non-operating interests in the Azeri-Chirag-Deepwater Gunashli (ACG) oil fields (including interests in the Western Export Route Pipeline) and the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline located in Azerbaijan, to MOL Hungarian Oil and Gas PLC for a consideration (negotiated sale price) of $1.57 billion, Report informs, citing Chevron.

Chevron Global Ventures Ltd. has sold its 9.57% interest in ACG, which had a daily net production of 20,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2019. In addition, Chevron BTC Pipeline, Ltd. has completed the sale of its 8.9% interest in BTC.

The transaction closed on April 16, 2020.

MOL and Chevron had signed the agreement in November 2019.

With the purchase of these stakes, MOL has become the third biggest partner of the ACG.

Azeri-Chirag-Deepwater Gunashli (ACG) field, located about 100km east of Baku is the largest oilfield in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian basin. The Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) was signed on September 20, 1994, in Baku. The contract covered the development of an area that covered three major oil fields in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea – Azeri, Chirag and Deepwater portion of the Gunashli field (ACG). On September 14, 2017, the PSA was extended until 2049.

ACG shareholders are BP Exploration (Caspian Sea) Limited (Operator, 30.37%); SOCAR (25%); Inpex Southwest Caspian Sea, Ltd. (9.31%); Equinor Apsheron a.s. (7.27%); Exxon Azerbaijan Limited (6.79%); Turkiye Petrolleri A.O., (5.73%); Itochu Oil Exploration (Azerbaijan) Inc. (3.65%); ONGC Videsh Limited (2.31%).

Baku-Tbilisi Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline carries oil from the Azeri-Chirag-Deepwater Gunashli (ACG) field and condensates from Shah Deniz across Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey. It links the Sangachal terminal on the shores of the Caspian Sea to Ceyhan marine terminal on the Turkish Mediterranean coast. In addition, crude oil from Turkmenistan continues to be transported via the pipeline.

BTC shareholders are BP Pipelines (BTC) Limited (Operator, 30.10%); SOCAR (25%); Equinor BTC Caspian AS (8.71%); Turkish Petroleum BTC Ltd. (6.53%); ENI BTC Limited (5.00%); TOTAL (BTC) B.V. (5.00%); ITOCHU Oil Exploration (BTC) Inc. (3.40%); INPEX BTC Pipeline, Ltd. (2.50%); Exxon Azerbaijan Limited (2.50%); ONGC BTC Limited (2.36%).