Azerbaijan, Baku, Jan. 23 / Trend, E. Ismayilov /
Contractors for the construction of the second stage of the development of the "Shah Deniz" offshore gas condensate field in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea will be determined in late 2013 - early 2014, a source on the oil and gas market told Trend today.
Contractors for such work were to be determined this year, but the deadline was postponed to late 2013 - early 2014 due to the addition of certain amendments.
According to the source, contracts will be signed in January 2014. Construction work will be launched in June 2014.
"Contractors will prepare the launch of construction work and in mid-2013 (June) begin construction," the source said.
Previously, according to the preliminary work schedule, gas exports within the second development stage of Shah Deniz may start in April 2017.
According to the schedule, the construction of the two platforms planned to be used within the second stage of field development must be completed by late 2015. The platforms and necessary infrastructure should be ready for exploitation in October 2016.
Project plans include the construction of 2 new offshore platforms connected to each other by a bridge, the drilling of 26 underwater wells with the help of two semi-submersible drilling rigs, the construction of a 500-kilometer underwater pipeline at a depth of 550 meters, the creation of additional export facilities in Azerbaijan and Georgia, and the expansion of the Sangachal terminal.
Gas to be extracted within the second phase will be exported to Turkey (6 billion cubic meters) and Europe (10 billion cubic meters).
The total reserves of 'Shah Deniz' field are estimated at 1.2 trillion cubic meters of gas.
The contract to develop the offshore Shah Deniz field was signed on June 4, 1996. Participants to the agreement are: BP (operator) - 25.5 per cent, Statoil - 25.5 per cent, NICO - 10 per cent, Total - 10 per cent, LukAgip - 10 per cent, TPAO - nine per cent and SOCAR-10 per cent.