SOCAR, Equinor confirm Karabagh oil field discovery in Azerbaijan

State Oil Co. of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) and Equinor confirmed a discovery in Karabagh field, 120 km offshore Baku in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea. Estimated size of the discovered volumes of oil and gas are enough to pursue commercial development, SOCAR said in a Mar. 19 press release.

Drilling of the first appraisal well at Karabagh oil field started Dec. 23, 2019. The well was drilled in 180 m of water by the Dada Gorgud semi-submersible drilling rig operated by SOCAR’s Caspian Drilling Co. (CDC). The reservoir is at a depth of 3.4 km.

Karabagh “is the first oil field discovered during the independence period of our country and its oil reserves estimated more than 60 million tons,” said SOCAR’s president, Rovnag Abdullayev.

The consortium operated by Caspian International Petroleum Co. (CIPCO) drilled three exploration wells in the Karabagh PSA signed in 1995: two wells found gas in the southeast portion of the structure and the third well indicated presence of oil in the western part of the structure. In 1999, the PSA was terminated due to the non-commercial discovery.

In May 2018, SOCAR Karabagh and Equinor signed an equal share risk service agreement related to development of the field.