Princely aims for the Caspian
Yashar Latifov, vice president for field development at Azerbaijan’s Socar, outlines the firm’s ambitious upstream development plans
Azerbaijan celebrated in September the 25th anniversary of the ‘contract of the century’—the landmark Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (ACG) production sharing agreement signed with 11 international oil companies (IOCs) in 1994. ACG has been transformative for Azerbaijan’s oil and gas sector. With $36bn invested by the ACG partners over the years, it helped re-establish one of the world’s oldest hydrocarbons provinces as a major energy supplier, producing more than 3.6bn bl of oil thus far. Twenty-five years on, Azerbaijan’s state-owned oil company Socar’s exploration and production challenge has evolved. While ACG’s contract period has been extended to 2049, Yashar Latifov tells Petroleum Economist
Also in this section
19 May 2025
The two Gulf states are combining fossil fuel production with ambitions to become leaders in low-carbon energy
15 May 2025
Financial problems, lack of exploration success and political dogma cause uncertainty across much of the region
14 May 2025
The invisible hand of the market has seen increasing transparency but much more needs to be done to build a better understanding
13 May 2025
A fall in Venezuelan output drives overall production lower, as Saudi Arabia starts to slowly bring more crude to the market
