BP says makes major gas discovery in Azerbaijan
LONDON (Reuters) - Oil giant BP (BP.L) said it had made a major gas-condensate discovery in Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz field in the Caspian Sea.
"Test flows were at the maximum capacity of the on-board equipment of 35 million standard cubic feet a day," BP said in a statement on Wednesday. "Results confirm sufficient gas at Shah Deniz for a second stage of development".
The SDX-04 well, some 70 kilometres south east of Baku, was drilled to a Caspian-record depth of more than 7,300 metres in the south western part of Shah Deniz.
The discovery represents a potentially significant find, BP said, adding that there will be appraisal to fully delineate the new structure in the next few years.
BP is operator of the Shah Deniz partnership with a 25.5 percent stake. Other shareholders include StatoilHydro (STL.OL) with 25.5 percent and the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR), LUKOIL (LKOH.MM) and Total (TOTF.PA) each with 10 percent.
Shares in BP were up 2.5 percent at 597.5 pence at 10:10 a.m.
