Baku, Azerbaijan, March 28
By Emil Ismayilov - Trend:
About 1.95 billion cubic meters of gas was extracted from underground storage since the beginning of the season in Azerbaijan, a source in the SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan) told Trend on March 28.
Extraction of gas from underground storage in Azerbaijan usually starts in autumn, due to deteriorating weather conditions and rising gas consumption in the country.
Azerbaijan has two underground gas storages facilities, Kalmaz and Garadagh.
Garadagh accounts for more than 1.04 billion cubic meters of gas storage, and Kalmaz 903.8 million cubic meters, according to the source.
Currently, the residual amount of gas in underground storage facilities is about 1.5 billion cubic meters, of which Garadagh accounts for about 834.41 million cubic meters and Kalmaz for 664.82 million cubic meters.
According to the source, better weather conditions reduced gas consumption and correspondingly the volume of gas extraction from storage. Currently daily gas extraction from storage was at the level of 6.59 million cubic meters as opposed to 23.37 million cubic meters on February 4.
"The volume of gas consumption is reduced, and gas extraction from the storage will end in April," the source said.
At the end of last pumping season, the volume of gas in underground storage exceeded 3.43 billion cubic meters, compared to about 3.3 billion cubic meters at the end of the previous season.
At the end of the extraction season, the residual amounts of gas in underground storage exceeded 1.47 billion cubic meters, about 780 million cubic meters in Garadagh storage and 697.03 million cubic meters in Kalmaz storage.
The country's underground storages allow the storage of nearly 3.5 billion cubic meters of gas.
Translated by S.I.
Edited by C.N.