Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, June 16 / Trend H. Hasanov /
SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan) and Dragon Oil (UAE), oil producer since 1996 in the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea, signed an agreement on the transportation of raw materials to world markets through Baku Port, the Dragon Oil said.
"The main marketing and business goals of Dragon Oil are to guarantee the safe and uninterrupted sales and supplies to world markets with the most appropriate market prices. I am glad that Dragon Oil signed the trade contract with SOCAR, which proved itself as a reliable business partner in the recent years," Dragon Oil Director General Dr. Abdul Jaleel Al Khalifa said.
The statement says that the company will continue to explore alternative routes for the export of crude oil.
Earlier, the company mainly used the southern route through Iran on the supply system "swap". In late March 2010, term of the agreement for the exchange of crude oil from the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOS) expired. Earlier this year the contract was extended until July of 2010, negotiations on further actions have not been completed yet.
In the first quarter, Dragon Oil sold two million barrels of oil, which is 20 percent less than the corresponding period of 2009, when the company exported 2.5 million barrels. At the same time 86 percent of oil was shipped through Iran.
Controlling stake in Dragon Oil belongs to Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC), which is owned by the Dubai Government. The contract PSA (PSA) with the Turkmen Government was signed in 1999 for a period of 25 years.
The company conducts development at the Jeitun and Jigalibek fields on the Caspian shelf within a contract signed with the Turkmen government. According to an independent auditor, proved hydrocarbon resource base of this block is 636 million barrels of oil, probable reserves of gas are estimated at 3.2 trillion cubic feet.
