Azerbaijan parliament ratifies oil contract

The Azerbaijan parliament overwhelmingly voted to ratify on Tuesday a
deal on the exploration and development of the Bahar and Gum Deniz
offshore fields in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea.

The PSA contract was signed in December 2009 between the State Oil
Company of the Azerbaijani Republic (SOCAR) and Bahar Energy Limited,
Trend reports.

The contract consist of two parts: the first part plans the
stabilization of extraction in the block, the second involves
exploring the perspective structure of Bahar-2. The first part of the
plan requires drilling 50 new boreholes. 100 boreholes will undergo
repairs.

The contract will last 25 years and can be prolonged for another 5
years. SOCAR profits will initially total 40%, and will eventually
reach 90%. Initial estimates indicate that over $1 billion will be
invested in the project.