Baku: The Shah Deniz consortium has announced the award of a major automation contract for the Shah Deniz Compression (SDC) project to Emerson, bp told APA-Economics. The contract covers the delivery of integrated control and safety systems for remote operations of the SDC platform, including process control, safety shutdown, fire and gas detection, and power management systems.

According to Azeri-Press News Agency, these systems will enable real-time visibility and remote control of critical platform operations, helping to enhance safety, reliability, and operational efficiency while reducing operating costs and supporting long-term performance. Ilgar Mammadov, bp project general manager, stated that this contract marks an important milestone in the delivery of the SDC project, with automation and control systems playing a crucial role in the unmanned SDC platform's operation.

The SDC project aims to maximize recovery from the Shah Deniz field, accessing additional gas resources and sustaining long-term production. With a projected investment of $2.9 billion, the project represents the next phase of development for the Shah Deniz gas field, designed to produce low-pressure gas reserves and maximize resources recovery.

The project is expected to enable the production and export of approximately 50 billion cubic meters of additional gas and 25 million barrels of condensate from the Shah Deniz field. It involves the installation of a new compression facility, an electrically-powered unmanned compression platform, or Normally Unattended Installation (eNUI), in 85 meters of water, 3 kilometers from the existing Shah Deniz Bravo (SDB) platform.

Equipped with four 11-MW compressors, the SDC platform will serve as a host facility for gas compression from both the Shah Deniz Alpha (SDA) and SDB platforms. Before reaching the Sangachal terminal onshore, export gas from the platforms will undergo compression at SDC. The project also includes several associated facilities to be installed offshore in the Shah Deniz contract area and additional brownfield works at SDA, SDB, and the Sangachal terminal.

Construction activities are underway, with completion expected in 2029 to receive first gas for compression from the SDA platform in 2029 and from the SDB platform in 2030.