VP: BP preparing for next stage of exploration at Shafag-Asiman field

BP plans to continue exploration work at the Shafag-Asiman gas field, located in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea, as part of the next stage of the project, BP's Vice President for the Caspian Region, Bakhtiyar Aslanbayli, told journalists, Report informs.

Aslanbayli noted that the project is currently in the planning phase: "We are assessing which drilling rig will be used for exploration and how this will be coordinated with other projects. Once the rig is freed from work on another project, it will be deployed at the Shafag-Asiman field."

The production sharing agreement (PSA) between BP and SOCAR for joint exploration and development of the Shafag-Asiman offshore block in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea was signed in Baku on October 7, 2010.

The Shafag-Asiman block lies some 125 kilometers (78 miles) to the south-east of Baku and is located in a deepwater section of about 650-800 meters. The block is located 60km from Shah Deniz and 145km from the Sangachal terminal.

In 2012, a 3D seismic acquisition programme was conducted on the Shafag-Asiman contract area. Interpretation of the seismic dataset was completed in 2015, followed by the selection of the exploration well location and planning of drilling activities.

The first exploration well on Shafag-Asiman was spudded on January 13, 2020. The drilling was completed in March 2021 to the base of the Fasila reservoir to a depth of 7,189 meters. The well encountered gas condensate resource in the penetrated reservoirs.

In the first half of 2023, the interpretation of the results of the reprocessing of the data obtained from the first exploration well was completed.

On June 3, 2025, BP, SOCAR, and TPAO signed several agreements enabling TPAO to join the PSA for the Shafag-Asiman block.

On Shafag-Asiman, with the joining of TPAO in June 2025, further evaluation of the block will be accelerated to help identify the most suitable option to progress the project. To that end, additional evaluation activities will be carried out, including the drilling of a well into the Lower Surakhany reservoir. To allow for these activities, the exploration period under the Shafag-Asiman production sharing agreement (PSA) has also been extended, with BP remaining the operator during this period.