Turkmenistan Announces New Gas Discovery

Turkmenistan has announced a new gas and condensate discovery in the Karakum Desert, the Turkmenistan.ru website reported on 22 October. The discovery was made by the Turkmengeologiya State Corporation in Akhal province in the Karakum Desert. The report said gas was discovered at a depth of 2,600-2,620 ms and that testing of the well showed a daily rate of 500,000 cu ms of gas and 33 cu ms of condensate. Testing of the well continues, it added. Turkmenistan.ru said: “The increased exploration, development and provision of necessary industrial facilities at new promising areas is one of the priorities of development of the oil and gas sector of Turkmenistan. In accordance with the program of development of the industry for the period up to 2030, natural gas production is projected to reach 250 bcm.”

Turkman Gas Shipments To Russia Have Yet To Resume

Despite reports in September that Ashgabat and Moscow had resolved their dispute over purchases of Turkmen gas, (MEES, 12 October), gas shipments have yet to resume. Eurasianet.org reported on 27 October that Gazprom officials said they were unable to come to an agreement with “Turkmen leaders.” Commenting on Russian media reports, the Eurasianet quoted Gazprom executive Alexander Medvedev as saying the company was “conducting productive talks” and hoped to resume gas exports to Russia soon. It also quoted Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko as saying the matter “should be resolved in a peaceful manner and without political influence.” The agency said Gazprom’s position may be influenced by demands from Russia’s European customers to revise prices downward.

Other recent developments in the Caspian and Black Sea region include:

• Kazakhstan’s state-owned oil and gas company KazMunaiGaz on 27 October said a subsidiary of China’s Sinopec would be awarded a $1.04bn contract to build new plant at the Atyrau refinery. The new processing facility will enable the refinery to produce benzene and other chemicals and improve the quality of gasoline output.  

• Tengizchevroil (TCO), the Chevron-led operating company developing Kazakhstan’s onshore Tengiz/Korolev oilfield, will boost production to 36-42mn tons/year (720,000-840,000 b/d) by 2016. TCO’s general director Todd Levy on 7 October said his company planned more seismic work, additional wells and the injection of more sour gas into the reservoir. Crude production totaled 17.3mn tons (346,000 b/d) in 2008 and is forecast to reach 22.5mn tons (450,000 b/d) during 2009. TCO completed Phase 1 of its Second Generation Plant/Sour Gas Injection (SGP/SGI) project in early 2008 (MEES, 4 February 2008, 14 April 2008).  

• Topaz Energy and Marine, a subsidiary of Renaissance Services, has won a $14mn contract to operate seven marine vessels to service Malaysian Marine and Heavy Engineering (MMHE) in the Carigali field offshore Turkmenistan. Work will be carried out by BUE Turkmenistan, part of the Topaz group. MMHE is operating a joint venture between France’s Technip and Malaysia’s Petronas. BUE Turkmenistan will provide transport and support for the installation of topsides for the Magtymguly Collector Riser (MCR-A) platform and it will lay a pipe foundation from the platform to the onshore gas terminal.   

• China’s CNPC announced that the final segment of the 3,000km, 200,000 b/d capacity Atyrau-Atasu-Alashankou oil pipeline across Kazakhstan to China began commercial operations on 9 October. Construction of the 792km Kenkiyak-Atasu final section of the pipeline was begun in April 2008. The Atyrau-Kenkiyak (western) and Atasu-Alashankou (eastern) components of the trunkline were brought into operation in 2003 and 2006, respectively. On 14 October CNPC and Kazakh state firm KazMunaiGaz (KMG) signed a framework agreement for the start of work on a plan to raise the pipeline’s capacity to 400,000 b/d.  

• Switzerland’s Elektrizitats-Gesellschaft Laufenburg is negotiating with Turkey to conclude a transit agreement for the transportation of Iranian gas across Turkish territory for the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP). EGL signed an agreement in March 2008 with the National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) for the delivery of up to 5.5 bcm/year of natural gas to Europe over a 25-year period (MEES, 24 March 2008). Deliveries are now expected to begin in 2012, according to Azerbaijan’s Trend Capital news agency. EGL spokeswoman Lilly Frei said first small deliveries could begin as early as 2010 if the company and its partners received the necessary gas agreements from Turkey.  

• The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) transported an average of 745,992 b/d of Kazakh and Russian crude during September, compared with 716,130 b/d in August. The bulk of crude shipped through the CPC is of Kazakh origin, but Russian companies TNK-BP, Rosneft and Surgutneftegas also export through the 1,510km pipeline. The CPC transported a total of 31.5mn tons of crude during 2008, compared with 32.6mn tons in 2007.  

• Georgia’s Batumi Oil Terminal (BOT) shipped 508,204 tons of crude oil and products during September, compared with 628,973 tons in August and 533,168 tons in July. BOT shipped at total of 7.2mn tons in 2008 compared to 9.5mn tons in 2007. Kazakhstan’s state-owned oil and gas company, KazMunaiGaz, has owned BOT since February 2008. Crude and products shipped through BOT arrive by rail from Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan.  

• Azerbaijan’s State Statistics Committee on 21 October reported that gas production during the first nine months of 2009 amounted to 17.3 bcm, down 0.6% year-on-year due to the closure of a well earlier this year at the offshore Shah Deniz gasfield. Azerbaijan estimates that total gas production in 2009 will reach 25-27 bcm, compared with 22.8 bcm in 2008. Shah Deniz output should reach as much as 7.5 bcm this year, rather than the 9 bcm forecast prior to the well trouble. Gas production at the offshore Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG) oilfield amounted to 12 bcm during the first nine months of this year. BP is operation of both Shah Deniz and ACG. Azerbaijan plans to boost gas output to 35-40 bcm/y by 2020.  

• Kazakhstan’s State Statistics Agency on 15 October reported that crude oil and condensate production during the first nine months of 2009 totaled 56.2mn tons (1.5mn b/d). Natural gas output during the first nine months of 2009 amounted to 26 bcm.

© Copyright MEES 2009.