Shah Deniz 2 Enters Start-Up Phase: BP
The BP-operated offshore Azerbaijani Shah Deniz 2 (SD2) and South Caucasus Pipeline Expansion (SCPX) projects have now entered the start-up phase in the run up to achieving first gas in 2018, BP reported May 17.
BP did not say when the first gas would be extracted and injected to grid exactly, but a source at Socar had already told NGW that gas production is scheduled for September 2018.
Azerbaijan is preparing to inaugurate the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) on May 29, but initially it will be SD1 gas that is injected into the pipeline, although ultimately the line is planned to bring a total 16.16bn m³/yr gas to Turkey (6bn m³/yr) and the European Union by 2020.
The BP-led consortium has spent $123mn in operating expenditure and about $415mn in capital expenditure on the field, the majority of which was associated with the SD2 project, BP reported. SD1 produced about 2.7bn m³ of sale gas in 1Q 2018, about an eighth more than last year.
About 14 wells have been drilled in SD2, with another 12 to come over time. BP also has another project in the Caspian Sea, the Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG) block, which delivered 525mn m³ sale gas to state-run company Socar in 1Q 2018. The rest was re-injected for reservoir pressure maintenance. In the quarter, the BP-led consortium spent $102mn on operating expenses and $260mn on capital expenses related to ACG activities.
The South Caucasus Pipeline (a part of the SGC that stretches from Azerbaijan to the Georgia-Turkey border) absorbed about $8mn in operating expenses and about $165mn in capital expenses. SCP extension project (SCPX) activities continued along the pipeline route across Azerbaijan and Georgia. Overall, 99% of the first gas scope is already complete.
SGC’s Turkish sector, the TransAnatolian pipeline, is also projected to start up on June 12. All mainline production welds are now completed across SCPX, with only tie-in welds remaining to complete the pipeline. Compressor Station 1 in Georgia has already been declared ready to operate. All the infrastructure required to support first commercial gas deliveries to Turkey has now been completed. At Compressor Station 2, commissioning has started and the activities are on schedule, the report said.