Azerbaijan Expands Grid, Aims to Stop Leaks
Azeri gas monopoly Socar plans to reduce gas pipeline losses to 7.9% in 2018, without saying what that meant in terms of cubic metres. CEO Rovnag Abdullayev said that the gasification in the country has reached 93% as of now and that Baku has allocated manat 100mn ($58.9mn) to bring gasification to 95% in 2018 and reduce gas losses. Azerbaijan’s gas network was 10,536 km in 2009, reached 48,558 km last year.
According to the latest statistics, Azerbaijan decreased gas losses in grid (excluding flaring) from 1.087bn m3 in 2015 (or 9.5% of total consumption) to 804.8mn m3 in 2016 (or 7.18% of total consumption).
The head of state gas distribution monopoly Azerigaz CEO Akbar Hajiyev also told state Az TV February 6 that to reach EU standards for unaccounted for gas – typically a few percent – would cost Baku about €3bn ($3.7bn). According to ministry statistics, Azerbaijan last year used 12.17bn m3, up 3.2% on 2016.
Separately, World Bank estimates that Azerbaijan’s upstream flaring stood at 201mn m³ in 2016, half of what it was in 2013.
Azerbaijan has forecast gross gas production growth of 4.9% in 2018 to 30.498bn m3, after falling each year since 2015. BP-operated fields, including Shah Deniz and the Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG) oil block account for 79% in Azerbaijan’s total gross gas production.