bp announces start-up of oil production from major new platform offshore Azerbaijan

bp, as operator of the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (ACG) project, today announced the start-up of oil production from the new Azeri Central East (ACE) platform as part of the ACG field development in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea, Report informs, citing the company.

bp’s strategy is to invest in the energy system of today – such as in the development of ACE – as well as the energy system of the future, Report informs.

The ACE platform is the seventh oil-producing platform installed on the giant ACG field in the Caspian Sea. ACG first began production in 1997 and has since produced over 4.3 billion barrels of oil. The bp-operated Shah Deniz gas field has two further platforms in the Caspian.

The ACE platform and related facilities are designed to process up to 100,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd), and the project is expected to produce up to 300 million barrels over its lifetime. Oil will pass through the processing facilities on the platform and then be exported around 130 kilometers to the onshore Sangachal terminal via a new in-field pipeline linked to an existing 30-inch subsea export line.

Initial production from ACE comes from the first well that was initiated from the platform at the end of last year. ACE production is expected to increase through 2024 to around 24,000 bpd as two more planned wells are drilled, completed, and brought online.

Ewan Drummond, bp’s senior vice president, of projects, said: “I’m incredibly proud of the team at bp for safely delivering the first bp-operated offshore platform fully controlled from onshore. This establishes a new benchmark for innovative engineering and competitive project delivery for our company and the wider industry.”

The ACE platform is technologically and digitally the most advanced bp-operated platform in the world. Its innovative engineering allows the automation of labour-intensive processes, enabling safer and more efficient operations. The platform has a state-of-the-art, fully automated drilling rig. The use of modern technology and new processes also helps lower operational emissions.

Gary Jones, bp’s regional president for Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Türkiye, said: “This successful start-up is testament to the ongoing close collaboration between bp, SOCAR, and the Government of Azerbaijan, together with the support of our partners. The first oil from ACE – in the year of the thirtieth anniversary of the agreement to develop ACG – marks the beginning of this world-class field’s next development phase.”

“This is the ninth world-class production platform that we have built, installed, and are operating offshore in Azerbaijan. ACE really stands out with its engineering creativity, advanced digital technology, and automation. We are proud to have delivered what we believe is the ‘platform of the future’.”

The safe start-up of ACE delivers on the first major investment decision made by the ACG partnership since the signing of the extended ACG production sharing agreement in 2017.

ACG participating interests are: bp (30.37 per cent), SOCAR (25.0 per cent), MOL (9.57 per cent), INPEX (9.31 per cent), Equinor (7.27 per cent), ExxonMobil (6.79 per cent), TPAO (5.73 per cent), ITOCHU (3.65 per cent), and ONGCVidesh (2.31 per cent).