Azernews.Az

By Aynur Jafarova

SOCAR and UNDP are implementing a project for preparing a national action plan aimed at reducing CO2 emissions, the head of SOCAR's Ecology Department said.

The remarks were made at an international conference titled "Global View on Environmental Issues in the Oil Industry", held in Baku on November 4-5.

Speaking at the conference's fourth session titled "Modern Approaches to Waste Management in the Oil Industry", Azer Aliyev said that the project covers 2014-2019.

The project is aimed at achieving rational use of energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in industry, residential and industrial buildings, and the transport sector.

The main aspects of the project are the analysis of current oil and gas consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, the financial and economic assessment of activities that can lead to a more eco-friendly use of energy resources, and creating a mechanism for the coordination of activities between the public and private structures and other interested parties, Aliyev said.

Cleaning existing refineries' territories requires special attitude

The Department Head told journalists that the cleaning-up process after dismantling SOCAR's existing oil refineries in Baku requires a special attitude.

According to him, cleaning the lands polluted with oil products is more difficult than cleaning lands that have been polluted with oil.

The cleaning process becomes more difficult due to location of enterprises within the city.

"It will be possible to speak about the appraisal and period of cleaning of these territories only after constructing a new complex for processing oil and gas and producing oil chemistry goods, as well as dismantling existing refinery facilities," Aliyev said.

He also said that the project for cleaning up the polluted areas under SOCAR's two oil refineries would be prepared on the basis of proposals offered by the ecological consultant for construction of the new complex.

The construction of a new complex worth $17 billion - including the interest on bank loans - entails building a petrochemical enterprise with a capacity of 1.7 million tons of finished products, an oil refinery with a capacity of 10 million tons per year, and a gas processing plant with a capacity of 10 billion cubic meters per year.

In accordance with global practices, an autonomous energy bloc is planned to ensure the autonomous work of the new plants in the complex.

The construction of a new oil refinery will help meet the country's demands for strategic oil products in the next 20 years.

The plant will produce three million tons of gasoline and up to 3.6 million tons of diesel fuel per year. The product will meet the Euro-5 standards. It is also planned to produce up to 1.7 million tons of reactive motor fuel A-1, as well as other oil products.

The complex will produce about 1.7 million tons of export-oriented oil chemistry goods as well.

Commissioning the entire OGPC complex is scheduled for the end of 2020.

Bulla Deniz accident didn't significantly impact environment

Aliyev went on to note that the accident at the Caspian field Bulla did not significantly impact the environment.

After the accident, an environmental action plan was prepared according to which stations were installed in the disaster zone.

"Testing for possible changes in the composition of sea water and air in the accident area was carried out from these stations. As a result of the environmental researches and monitoring, it can be said that the accident did not have an impact on the composition of sea water in the covered area, and the impact on the composition of air was very minimal," Aliyev said.

The Head of the Ecology Department also noted that one cannot deny the release of a specific carbon dioxide emission into the air as a result of a fire in the well, but this figure was very minimal on a global scale which did not even raise concerns in the littoral states.

Aliyev said that in response to Kazakhstan's appeal, SOCAR has provided them with sufficient information on the environmental situation of the accident area, and the appellant was fully satisfied with the implemented environmental action plan.

The fire flared up in the well at a depth of 5,868 meters and all 60 people working on the platform were evacuated.

According to SOCAR, the fire erupted on the night of August 17 during drilling work. A gas explosion occurred at 23:30 local time, followed by a fire. As a result of the accident 62 platform workers were moved to safety, with no casualties reported.

SOCAR has fully contained the accident in the gas exploration well at the Bulla Deniz field and plans to build a new platform there.

Bulla Deniz is estimated to contain 17 billion cubic meters of natural gas, and SOCAR has been developing the field since 1975. There are currently 15 operational wells at Bulla Deniz.

From 1975 to 2009, SOCAR extracted about 62 million metric tons of gas and 11 million tons of condensate from the field.

Law on assessment of the environmental impact to strengthen preventive measures

Aliyev also said that the adoption of a new law on the assessment of environmental impacts will strengthen measures that prevent oil and gas pollution and improve the ecological situation.

"We joined the relevant international conventions, but having such a law in the country will increase the enterprises' responsibility and tighten the requirements for the preparation of reports on the social and environmental impact," he said.

According to Aliyev, the new law will meet international standards and requirements which are applied in evaluating environmental and social impacts.