The fire was started after strong winds caused the partial collapse of one of the facilities, destroying a gas pipeline on the platform, the energy company stated. “One body was found and a search-and-rescue operation for 30 missing workers is under way”, it said in a statement, adding that 32 workers had been safely evacuated.
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The missing workers were on a lifeboat that toppled into heavy seas late Friday after the oil platform caught fire when an underwater gas pipeline was damaged in the storm.
One worker was killed, 30 were missing and 33 were rescued Saturday after a fire swept through a Caspian Sea oil platform owned by Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR, the company said.
Rescuers have found remains for six of dozens of oil workers who went missing following a fire at Azerbaijan’s oil rig on Caspian Sea, according to the country’s TREND news agency.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the affected platform, known as platform 10, produces about 6,000 barrels per day and is a hub for other SOCAR oil fields.
About 60 percent of SOCAR’s oil production passes through the platform where the fire broke out, meaning the state company’s output will be temporarily hit. Daily production was 920 metric tons of oil and 1.08 million cubic meters of gas, it said.
“For Socar it’s a disaster”.
While Azeri oil is used in refineries in Europe and elsewhere, a global supply glut and slowing demand growth in China means there is plenty of oil in the market to substitute for any loss of Azeri crude. He also declared a day of national mourning as reported by Reuters.
BP PLC said there was no impact on operations at its offshore Azeri Caspian oil platforms, where the oil major is developing a different section of the Guneshli oil field.
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Gunashli offshore oil field is located 120km east of Baku, Azerbaijan, 12km south-east of Oil Rocks and is believed to have more than 100 million tonnes of oil reserves.
