Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan signed an agreement to jointly develop a long-disputed Caspian Dostlug field

Ashgabat, January 25 - Neftegaz.RU. The Memorandum of Understanding on the joint exploration of the once-disputed section of the he Dostluk field was signed in the Turkmenistan, between Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and his Turkmen counterpart Rashid Meredov.

Dostluk field was discovered by Soviet explorers in 1986.
Experts estimate that the field contains natural gas and at least 50 million tons of oil.

For many years Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan were at odds over the ownership of the undersea field, the block is located near the border between the Caspian maritime sectors of the 2countries.
But all that appears to be in the past with the signing of the new agreement.

Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov said:

• This document, which is the result of many years of work between our countries, is aimed at strengthening cooperation and mutual understanding in the field of energy, unlocking the joint potential of the 2 largest energy states .

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said:

• I would call today's document historic because Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan are starting joint work on the development of a field in the Caspian Sea for the 1^st time, and this field and work on the field will bring our countries and peoples even closer together,

According to the SOCAR spokesperson, both countries will now proceed to agreeing commercial and technical terms for the joint exploration and development of the Dostluk block that will most likely require the collection of new modern seismic data and the drilling of exploration wells.

In 2018, the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea was signed by Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Azerbaijan, and Iran, marking the beginning of efforts to clarify oil and gas rights.

To read the article in Russian