Azerbaijan, Baku, April 30 / Trend , E.Ismayilov/
The international conference to be held in Baku on May 5 aims to create a platform to develop a national program on reduce gas emissions which form greenhouse effect, as well as to attach attention of Azerbaijan and the world community to this problem. This conference will focus Azerbaijan's managing with gas causing the greenhouse effect, Head of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) Environmental Projects Management Department Faig Jafarov told Trend . The meeting will be held at the initiative of SOCAR jointly with Global Gas Flaring Reductions (GGFR) organization, which SOCAR has become a partner in 2008.
The Azerbaijani Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources and World Bank support to organize the conference.
"Through this conference, we want to draw attention of our countries' relevant ministries, bodes and public organization to this issue to form a base for this program via joint efforts," Jafarov said.
To develop and approve a special state program will strengthen and simplify processes of implementing projects on "Mechanism of Clear Development" (MCD) as part of the Kyoto Protocol, which Azerbaijan joined in 2000.
Roughly 120 delegates are expected to attend the conference. Particularly, officials of SOCAR, National Academy of Sciences, Azerenergy Joint Stock Company (JSC), Azerigaz JSC, Azerbaijan Airlines CJSC, Azerbaijan State Caspian Shipping and public organizations will partake in the conference. Moreover, delegates of the profile foreign companies, as well as foreign embassies in Azerbaijan will attend the meeting.
In 2008, volume of SOCAR's associated gas emission made up roughly 331 million cubic meters and around 120 million of which falls to Guneshli offshore field (its shallow part). This figure in the Neft Dashlari offshore field was 206 million cubic meters. The remained part of the emission falls to the rest offshore and onshore fields which are under development.
Volume of the gas emission in the Guneshli field was roughly 450 million cubic meters a year by 2006. "We could cut volume of emissions to the current level through injecting technological amendments to the production schedule, collection and transportation of oil since 2007," Jafarov said.
He said the company plans to launch a new compressor station to press a low-pressure gas to decrease gas emissions in early fourth quarter of 2009.
"We plan to catch all this gas by 2010," Jafarov said. Capacity of the station is 4 million cubic meters of gas each day. "This is too powerful and being built with reserves," Jafarov said.
SOCAR is constructing the station by own funds. To form a necessary infrastructure and implement the project costs 60 million manat.
The caught associated gas after pressing (increasing pressure) at this station will be sent to the Azerbaijan gas processing plant or national gas transport system and sold to subscribers.
The French Bank BNP Paribas finances development of necessary papers and registration of this project at the UN organizations in light of the Kyoto Protocol's requirements.
SOCAR also is utilizing the associated gas in the Neft Dashlari field. "Construction of a gas compressor station will be launched after finishing design work," Jafarov said.
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