SOCAR Inks Deals for Caspian Fields with Equinor

Azeri state oil company SOCAR and Norway's Equinor on Wednesday signed a risk service contract for the development of the Karabakh offshore oil and natural gas field in the Caspian Sea.

The two companies also signed a product-sharing agreement for Ashrafi, Dan-Ulduzu and Aypara exploration area.

"The agreements signed today represent a natural next step in the region. This will strengthen our position in a prolific basin and develop growth options," Equinor Chief Executive Eldar Saetre said in a statement.

To operate the licences, Equinor and SOCAR will form a 50-50 joint operating company. A final investment decision on field development will be taken following appraisal and engineering work.

(Reporting by Nailia Bagirova; writing by Maria Kiselyova; additional reporting by Oslo newsroom, editing by Vladimir Soldatkin and Gwladys Fouche)