BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan. 10
By Anastasia Savchenko - Trend:
Total, the French oil and gas company, which played an important role in Azerbaijan’s energy cooperation with France, is one of the first foreign energy companies in Azerbaijan that invested in the country’s oil and gas industry, Azerbaijan’s Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov told Trend.
Shahbazov was commenting on Azerbaijan’s cooperation with foreign companies.
Total, one of the shareholders of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) main export pipeline, is currently the operator of the development and exploration of the Absheron field, which has significant gas and condensate reserves, the minister said.
“Drilling of a dual bore well has already been completed at the field in order to estimate the reserves and start extracting the gas,” Shahbazov added. “The first product is planned to be received in 2021.”
The minister also reminded that for the purpose of cooperation in the field of alternative energy with French Total Eren S.A. and Quadran International companies, corresponding documents were signed in 2019.
“In the future, it is desirable that these French companies participate in auctions for granting the right to produce energy in the territory of renewable energy sources in Azerbaijan,” Shahbazov added.
The participants of the Absheron project include SOCAR and the French Total, with 50 percent each. The Absheron contract was signed Feb. 27, 2009, between SOCAR and Total.
