Chevron's first major venture in Azerbaijan began in 1997 when the company signed an agreement to explore the Absheron Offshore Block, a deepwater structure in the southern Caspian Sea.
After conducting a 3-D seismic program, we drilled an exploratory well in 2001. When the well proved unsuccessful, we suspended activity in Azerbaijan. However, we retained our involvement in the Caspian region through our partnership in Tengizchevroil, the joint venture company that operates the giant Tengiz oil field in Kazakhstan.
Our participation in Azerbaijan's economy grew significantly when we acquired Unocal in 2005.
We took over Unocal's interest in the Azerbaijan International Operating Company, which produces and develops offshore crude oil reserves in the Caspian Sea from the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli project. With that, Chevron became a partner in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline.
In 2006, the pipeline reached a historic milestone with the delivery of its first crude oil to world markets.
Updated: March 2009