BP works to resolve technical fault affecting Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz Alpha platform

Work is ongoing to resolve a technical issue on the Shah Deniz Alpha platform in Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz gas field, according to BP Azerbaijan, which provided an update to local media, per Caliber.Az.

The company stated that there have been no significant developments yet and that efforts to fix the problem are continuing. A technical fault was identified in the subsea condensate export line between the Shah Deniz Alpha platform and the Sangachal terminal. As a result, production and exports from the platform have been temporarily halted, and the platform has been safely shut down.

BP confirmed that all personnel aboard the platform are safe and that there has been no environmental impact. The company also emphasized that all offshore facilities, including the platform and pipeline, are in a safe condition. 

bp remains focused on fixing the issue and resuming normal operations as soon as possible.

The Shah Deniz gas field, located approximately 70 kilometres southeast of Baku in the Caspian Sea, is one of the largest natural gas fields in the world. It has been a vital source of energy for Azerbaijan since its discovery in 1999 and is operated by the Shah Deniz consortium.

The field has been developed in two major phases:

Phase 1, which began production in 2006, focuses on the initial gas reserves and exports gas through the South Caucasus Pipeline (SCP) to Türkiye and Georgia, while also meeting domestic energy needs.

Phase 2, which began operations in 2018, expanded the field's production capacity significantly, with new infrastructure including a platform, subsea pipelines, and a second processing train. This phase facilitates the transportation of gas to Europe through the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), forming a key part of the Southern Gas Corridor and helping to diversify Europe’s natural gas sources, reducing its reliance on Russian gas.

By Tamilla Hasanova