Azerbaijan discloses amount of investment in ACE platform project at Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli block

To date, $2.9 billion has been invested in the implementation of the Central East Azeri (ACE) platform project at the Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG) block.

According to Trend, the Chief Engineer of the Central East Azeri Project, Shukur Sadikhov, shared the figures during a media tour of the platform.

According to him, an additional 100,000 barrels of oil per day could be produced from the platform. A total of 300 million barrels of oil are planned to be produced with the help of the platform.

"First oil is expected to be produced in the first quarter of 2024. I also want to note that the cost of the project is 6 billion dollars and 2.9 billion dollars have been invested so far," he said.

For his part, the head of the construction sector Faig Neymatov said that the construction of pipelines within the project for oil and gas exports is 94 per cent complete.

Vagif Khalilov, head of pipelines and platform topsides construction, said that the platform topsides will be shipped offshore in the third quarter of 2023.

"They will first be assembled on land. I note that these works are more than 90 per cent complete and test work is underway," he added.

In addition, Rukhali Imanov, head of construction supervision for the ACE project, said the ACE platform's pipeline connection with the Sangachal terminal is scheduled for the second quarter of this year.

"This is the only platform in the Caspian Sea where control over operational processes will be exercised from land," he added.

ACE project worth $6 billion is the next stage of development of the giant ACG field in the Caspian Sea. ACE platform and equipment is designed to process up to 100,000 barrels of oil per day. Up to 300 million barrels are expected to be produced over the life of the project. The platform will be remotely operated from the Sangachal terminal and include an innovative automation system.