Baku, Azerbaijan, March 15
By Fakhri Vakilov - Trend:
The Russian company Lukoil plans to begin exploration on three investment blocks in Uzbekistan early next year, Trend reports with reference to the head of the Uzbekneftegaz department Nodir Mukhitdinov.
Recently, the head of Lukoil, Vagit Alekperov, speaking at the CERAWeek conference in Houston, said that the company hopes to discover new hydrocarbon reserves in Uzbekistan, as it has signed an agreement to explore the territory in the north-west of the country.
Mukhitdinov states that memorandum and agreement on the geological study of three blocks in the Navoi region were signed with Russian company.
“We have already begun joint studies of geological materials with Lukoil’s specialists. We have provided them with all geological information that we have. It will approximately last until the end of the year. We think that by early next year the Russian company will start exploration directly," Mukhitdinov noted.
Uzbekistan is one of the key regions for Lukoil. The company operates on Uzbek territory on the basis of production sharing agreements of the Kandym-Khauzak-Shady and Gissar projects.
The cumulative production of natural gas on projects managed by the company in Uzbekistan has reached 60 billion cubic meters. Most of this volume was harvested in the Khauzak-Shady and Kuvachi-Alat field in the Bukhara region.
Lukoil is the largest foreign investor in Uzbekistan - the volume of investments in the country's economy is about $8 billion. Currently, about 3,000 people are employed at the company's facilities.
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