RoydadNaft –  The CEO of Khazar Oil Company said the Iran Amir Kabir semi-submersible drilling rig is being prepared, after nearly a decade of inactivity, through major overhaul and reconstruction work to carry out oil and gas exploration drilling in the deep waters of the Caspian Sea.

According to Roydad Naft, Mohammad Hossein Daneshfar said Wednesday at a technology gathering with the presidents of Islamic Azad University branches in Gilan, Golestan, and Mazandaran provinces in Sari that exploratory operations in the deep Caspian Sea will begin in 2027 once the major overhaul of the Iran Amir Kabir semi-submersible platform is completed.

He said that under its articles of association, Khazar Oil Company is responsible for exploration, development, production, and storage of oil and gas in the southern Caspian Sea and the three northern provinces of the country.

Referring to previous exploration work, he added that a substantial share of the structures identified in the Caspian Sea lie in deepwater areas. The Iran Amir Kabir semi-submersible rig drilled the Sardar Jangal structure in the 2010s and confirmed the presence of oil there.

Daneshfar said the Iran Amir Kabir platform is currently undergoing a major overhaul and that exploratory activity in the deep Caspian is expected to resume in 2027 after the work is finished.

On exploration in Gilan and Golestan, the Khazar Oil CEO said exploratory drilling is under way along the Gilan coast and in Caspian Block 18; the results will determine whether the structure under study is commercially viable. In Golestan, seismic studies have been conducted onshore, offshore, and in shallow waters, and based on those findings a plan to drill one well is scheduled for next year.

Emphasizing universities’ capacity to help solve industry problems, he said universities can play an effective role across the entire oil industry value chain, from exploration to exports, and can help meet the sector’s scientific and technical needs through targeted theses.

Daneshfar said Khazar Oil Company welcomes research proposals from universities, especially projects that produce a clear, applicable outcome for the industry.