Socar AQS To Drill in Bangladesh

Azerbaijan’s drilling contractor Socar AQS will start drilling its first exploratory gas well in Bangladesh by the end of this month, CEO Ramin Isayev told NGW.

The Bangladeshi government announced tenders for drilling 108 exploratory wells in February 2017. Each tender contains 4 wells. Socar AQS LLC won one of tenders and signed a contract with Bangladesh's state-owned operator Bapex company in late July 2017.

According to its agreement with Bapex, Socar AQS  is committed to drill all three wells at 3,000-4,000 meter depth layers and hand over the project to Bapex by April 2019, Isayev said.

“We have already purchased and prepared all needed equipment and materials. A rig was rented to drill all wells gradually and established in the place," he said.

The block is in the east of country, close to the border with gas-rich but politically unstable Myanmar. Isayev said the possibility of reaching significant gas reserves is very high,  adding that the company is experienced in complicated offshore drilling operations, and that therefore drilling a Bangladeshi onshore block would be quite simple for Socar AQS. The wells will be drilled at Semutang Dakkhin 1, Begumganj 4, and Modarganj 1 fields, including two exploration and one appraisal wells.

This will be Socar AQS’s first onshore well: it has drilled 67 offshore wells and is drilling 18 wells in Caspian Sea. Established in 2007, it is jointly owned by state Socar and Nobel Oil Services (UK).

According to Isayev, a high-ranked Bangladeshi delegation also visited Azerbaijani oil and gas industry sites on Feb.20. “Today, Socar AQS and Bapex signed a new memorandum of understanding (MoU) to expand cooperation,” he said.

Two senior officials met with Isayev and signed a MoU during their visit to Azerbaijan, Socar said February 20. 

The photo above shows Bapex's managing director Nowshad Islam (left) and Socar AQS' deputy director Eldar Yaradanguliyev (right) sign the MoU (Credit: Socar AQS LLC)