Azerbaijan, Baku, April 6 / Trend E.Ismayilov /
Azerbaijan's rising gas potential will allow the country to carry out major exports in several decades, President of the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) Rovnag Abdullayev said on Wednesday.
Abdullayev said SOCAR has decided to sell Azerbaijani gas to Europe via Turkey.
The gas reserves of the Umid field, as well as the perspective field Babak, increase the country's gas potential. An exploratory drilling should be completed on the prospective field Absheron in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea by late 2011, he added.
Abdullayev said SOCAR is negotiating with various companies for gas sales from Shah-Deniz-2.
Some 6 billion cubic meters of gas the Shah-Deniz-2 is envisaged for Turkey and 10 billion for Europe, Abdullayev said.
The contract to develop Shah Deniz was signed June 4, 1996. Participants are BP (operator) - 25.5 percent, Statoil - 25.5 percent, NICO - 10 percent, Total - 10 percent, LukAgip - 10 percent, TPAO - 9 percent, and SOCAR - 10 percent.