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Azerbaijan to use special equipment for high pressure drilling in Caspian Sea

Economy Materials 24 May 2015 08:00 (UTC +04:00)
Azerbaijan will become one of the first countries to apply special equipment for high pressure drilling on the prospective structures in the Caspian Sea, said the message posted May 21 on the Rigzone portal.
Azerbaijan to use special equipment for high pressure drilling in Caspian Sea

Baku, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Maksim Tsurkov - Trend:

Azerbaijan will become one of the first countries to apply special equipment for high pressure drilling on the prospective structures in the Caspian Sea, said the message posted May 21 on the Rigzone portal.

The message said that "Caspian Drilling Company" (CDC), in which 92.44 percent of the equity is owned by SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan) will become one of the first companies in the world, which will carry out drilling work from the floating rig of the new generation, equipped with a blow out preventor (BOP), which allows to drill at a pressure of 138 MPa.

"Construction of a new drilling rig goes according to schedule," said the message. "As of late March, about 70 percent of the units and the lower part of the case of the rig have been assembled. Parts of the rigs are built in different locations, but final assembly will be carried out at the Caspian Shipyard plant. Commissioning of the drilling rig is planned for December 2016."

The construction of DSS38M floating rig will allow installing the latest special equipment, BOP system for conducting operation, with a minimal loss of time at pressures up to 138 MPa, according to the CDC spokesperson.

"The presence of one of the world's first floating rigs, equipped with BOP to work under high pressure, will make it possible to conduct drilling operations that are scheduled in the Caspian sea," he said.

The message also said that the representative of CDC did not mention specific fields, where drilling will be carried out.

The first new generation rig will be built for the needs of the SOCAR. The drilling operator will be "Caspian Drilling Company" (CDC), in which the SOCAR owns 92.44-percent share. Singaporean "Keppel FELS Limited" company has been chosen as the contractor of the rig's construction, with which the CDC signed an agreement for the construction work last June.

The new rig will be designed to drill wells up to 8,000 meters at the depth of 1,000 meters. The construction is to be completed in 2016.

The rig will be used for drilling of prospective structures and fields in Azerbaijan, such as the Umid field and such perspective structures as Babek, Karabakh, Ashrafi and others.

Azerbaijan should construct four new floating drilling rigs, taking into account the implementation of big projects in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea.

Edited by CN

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Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov

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