Azerbaijan, Baku, Jan. 7 / Trend E.Ismayilov /
The perspective structure "Babak" in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea is ready to implement exploration drilling, a source in the oil and gas market said on Friday.
Earlier, the necessary geophysical surveys, in particular two-dimensional geophysics, were conducted on the structure. Obtained data are sufficient for exploratory drilling.
Another issue, according to the source, is the geophysical survey that may be needed after drilling the first exploration well. They are needed to refine the structure and location of other wells.
Start date of exploratory drilling in the Azerbaijani perspective offshore structure "Babak" will depend on the availability of the free drilling installation in the Caspian Sea, SOCAR First Vice President Khoshbakht Yusifzade said earlier. Unlike the "Umid" field, where for exploratory drilling has been installed fixed offshore platform, a floating drilling installation is planned to be used in the "Babak" structure.
As Yusifzade said, date of drilling in the prospective structure "Babak" will not depend on the results of drilling of the second well in the "Umid" field, but it is directly related to the presence of the installation.
Earlier SOCAR announced the opening of a major gas condensate field Umid in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea. The opening of Umid field proved the existence of large gas reserves in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea, SOCAR president Rovnag Abdullayev said earlier. Abdullayev said exploratory dilling in the structure will start in 2011.
As another source in SOCAR said earlier, exploratory drilling in the "Babak" structure delays due to lack of free drilling installation. Design tasks on drilling in "Babak" have been already prepared. Only one well will be drilled first, the design depth of which will hit 6,800 meters.
According to SOCAR geologists, the reserves of the structure are estimated at 300 billion cubic meters of gas and 45 million tons of condensate.