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TURKMENISTAN OIL AND GAS INFORMATION
Turkmenistan ranks fourth in the world to Russia, Iran and the United
States in natural gas reserves. The Turkmenistan Natural Gas Company (Turkmengaz), under the auspices of the Ministry of Oil
and Gas, controls gas extraction in the republic. Gas production is the youngest and most dynamic and promising sector of
the national economy. Turkmenistan's gas reserves are estimated at 8.1-8.7 trillion cubic meters and its prospecting potential
at up to 21 trillion cubic meters. The Ministry of Oil and Gas oversees exploration of new deposits. Sites under exploration
are located in Mary Province, in western and northern Turkmenistan, on the right bank of the Amu Darya, and offshore in the
Caspian Sea.
Most of Turkmenistan's oil is extracted by the Turkmenistan State
Company (Concern) Turkmennebit from fields at Koturdepe, Nebitdag, and Chekelen near the Caspian Sea, which have a combined
estimated reserve of 700 million tons. The oil extraction industry started with the exploitation of the fields in Chekelen
in 1909 (by Nobel brothers) and Nebitdag in the 1930s, then production leaped ahead with the discovery of the Kumdag field
in 1948 and the Koturdepe field in 1959. Big part of the oil produced in Turkmenistan is refined in Turkmenbashy and Seidi
refineries. Also, oil is exported by tankers through Caspian Sea to Europe and other international markets.
Oil production reached peaks of 14,430,000 tons in 1970 and 15,725,000
tons in 1974, compared with 5,400,000 tons in 1991. Today, some 10 million ton of oil is produced annually by Turkmennebit
and foreign oil companies operating under PSA.
Modernizing the park of equipment and operating techniques of Turkmennebit
and Turkmengaz with the help of suppliers and service companies, attracting more foreign oil companies for PSA and joint operation
contracts in order to significantly increase production of hydrocarbon's is one of the main tasks for the country's petroleum
industry. | |
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