Force Majeure Situation at the Shah Deniz Pipeline Persists

The repair of the underwater pipeline transporting condensate from the Shah Deniz field’s “Alpha” production platform in the Caspian Sea to the Sangachal terminal may extend until the end of this week, reports Turan, citing informed sources.

Previously, it was anticipated that the pipeline would resume operations, and production on the “Alpha” platform would restart on January 15. However, adverse weather conditions on January 14 delayed the process of restoring full operations at Shah Deniz. Repairs are ongoing.

According to information from Azerbaijan Gas Supply Company (AGSC), gas and condensate production at this flagship Azerbaijani field might restart by January 19 at the latest, though possibly earlier.

Meanwhile, BP, the operator of production at Shah Deniz, is making every effort to complete the technical work on the pipeline. The force majeure situation, which began on January 6, has resulted in export revenue losses, as only one production platform, “Bravo,” is currently operational.

It is worth noting that “Alpha” typically produces 10 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas annually, while “Bravo” produces 16 bcm per year.

“Shah Deniz gas exports to Europe have decreased by 8.5 million cubic meters per day. Under normal circumstances, before the force majeure, European countries received over 35 million cubic meters of gas per day from Azerbaijan, of which about 24–25 million cubic meters went to Italy. Due to the force majeure, gas buyers from Shah Deniz are relying on substitution schemes developed within Europe,” the source noted.

Prior to the technical malfunction, the combined daily production from both Shah Deniz platforms was 74–75 million cubic meters per day.

In addition to Italy, AGSC has contracts for Shah Deniz gas with Georgia, Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, North Macedonia, Hungary, and Slovakia. Romania’s contract expired in 2024 and was not renewed, while Slovakia received trial shipments in December 2024, which were also not extended.