Page 12 - FSUOGM Week 06 2020

FSUOGM PROJECTS & COMPANIES FSUOGM
Halliburton ayes Azeri opportunites
AZERBAIJAN
Halliburton is set to form a joint venture with the local part- state, part-private operator.
US oilfield services giant Halliburton is looking to target contract opportunities in Azerbaijan by teaming up with a local player.
The Houston-based giant said on February 11 it has signed a memorandum with SOCAR- AQS on forming a joint venture to “provide a broad suite of oilfield products and services in Azerbaijan.”
SOCAR-AQS itself is a partnership between Azerbaijan’s national oil company Socar and Baku-based private firm Nobel Oilfield Services.
“By aligning with SOCAR AQS, we believe the planned joint venture will be uniquely posi- tioned to bring world-class offerings to meet the region’s growing demands in oilfield products and services,” Halliburton regional vice presi- dent Ahmed Kenawi commented in a statement.
The joint venture will be based in Baku, and offer equipment and services to both onshore and offshore projects in Azerbaijan, the com- panies said. It is expected to be finalised in the second quarter of this year.
SOCAR-AQS was set up in 2007, but up until
recently it only undertook work at fields owned by Socar. In contrast, Azerbaijan’s international- ly-run projects such as Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (ACG) and Shah Deniz have both traditionally relied heavily on foreign contractors.
Eager to see domestic companies play a greater role in the service sector, however, the Azerbaijani government helped set up a partnership between SOCAR-AQS and UK-based contractor KCA Deutag in 2018. The pair’s joint venture Turan Drilling & Engineering went on to win a $500mn platform operations and maintenance contract from BP at ACG the following year.
The planned joint venture between SOCAR- AQS and Halliburton is likely to vie for similar largescale contracts.
SOCAR-AQS’s shareholder Nobel was founded in 2005 by Azerbaijani businessman Nasib Hasanov, an associate of the Pashayev clan of Azerbaijan’s first lady Mehriban Aliyeva. Has- anov is a frontman for the presidential family’s business interests, industry sources have told NewsBase. ™
Lukoil eyes Turkmen Caspian projects
TURKMENISTAN
Lukoil already works in Azeri, Kazakh and Russian waters of the Caspian.
LUKOIL head Vagit Alekperov travelled to Turkmenistan last week to meet with Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov.
Lukoil has “strategic interests in Turkmen- istan,” Alekperov said during the meeting, according to a statement by the Russian oil pro- ducer on February 5. Berdymukhamedov in turn “noted the prospects for co-operation with Lukoil in the framework of an intergovernmen- tal dialogue with the Russian Federation.”
Turkmen state media were more forthcom- ing on what was said between the two men. The pair, the news outlets reported, discussed “pos- sibilities for implementing joint projects for the development of hydrocarbon resources in Turk- menistan.” In particular, Lukoil is interested in joint projects in the Turkmen section of the Cas- pian Sea, reports claimed.
“According to Alekperov, a favourable invest- ment climate and a suitable legal framework have been established in Turkmenistan, making it pos- sible to effectively invest in the development of oil and gas fields and the construction of infrastruc- ture,” state media said. “Therefore, Lukoil is inter- ested in implementing projects in these areas.”
Turkmenistan has carved up its portion of the Caspian into 32 blocks and has sought over the years to attract foreign investors to help search for oil and gas. By and large this effort has floundered, however. At present only four of the blocks have foreign operators, and only
two have entered production: Block 1 operated by Malaysia’s Petronas and Block 2 operated by UAE-based Dragon Oil. The other pair of pro- jects are inactive, and involve Cyprus-registered Buried Hill and Russia’s Itera.
Investors have been deterred by issues such as corruption, lack of transparency and the govern- ment’s failure to honour contracts. Difficult mar- ket conditions in recent years have not helped matters. Berdymukhamedov is also understood to be highly distrustful of Western international oil companies (IOCs).
The invitation to Lukoil comes at a time when energy ties between Turkmenistan and Russia are warming. Russia resumed purchases of Turk- men gas in 2019 after a three-year hiatus. Russia’s Gazprom later signed a five-year contract to take 5.5bn cubic metres annually of Turkmen gas, providing the Central Asian country’s struggling economy with a lift. Shortly afterwards, the Rus- sian government said that Lukoil, Rosneft and Gazprom were interested in developing oil and gas fields in Turkmenistan.
Lukoil is a well-experienced Caspian Sea operator, involved in exploration and produc- tion projects in Azeri, Kazakh and Russian waters. Turkmenistan intends to hold the first in a series of roadshows on February 24 in Dubai to showcase opportunities for investors in its oil and gas industry, including in the Caspian (See FSU OGM Week 1 2020). ™
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Week 06 12•February•2020