Hungarian energy major MOL Group and its joint venture partners have achieved the first-ever commercial gas production in the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (ACG) field in Azerbaijan.
Drillers completed an initial production well tapped into vast non-associated gas (NAG) reservoirs situated directly beneath and above the existing, oil-bearing structures.
Drilled from the West Chirag offshore platform, the inaugural well has initiated testing activities to unlock a massive gas resource, representing a critical first step inunlocking the field’s significant non-associated gas potential.
The field is known as the one of the world’s largest oil-producing fields, with up to four trillion cubic feet (approximately 112 billion cubic metres) of gas in place, and a potential upside of up to six trillion cubic feet.
Gas and condensate captured during the campaign will be piped directly to the onshore Sangachal Terminal using pre-existing ACG infrastructure.
“After successful oil production in the ACG field, the first gas production marks an important step towards the field’s further development, building on our strong cooperation with our partners in the project, said Zsombor Marton, Executive Vice President of MOL Group Exploration and Production.
“We are committed to leveraging our extensive experience in exploration and production to further advance the upstream sector of Azerbaijan and to support the supply security of Central Europe.”
Looking ahead, the company will conduct a seismic survey, set to begin in 2026, followed by the exploration drilling at a later stage.
MOL Group is the third-largest shareholder in the ACG venture, sitting behind the operator, BP, and the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOCAR).
The company originally entered the Caspian nation in 2020, acquiring a 9.57 per cent stake in ACG and an 8.9 per cent stake in the strategic Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline.
The ACG field is a critical asset for MOL, accounting for 14 per cent of its total global production and 26 per cent of its total reserves as of 2025.
The gas success follows a broader expansion by MOL in Azerbaijan, including a production sharing agreement signed with SOCAR for the onshore Shamakhi-Gobustan region, where seismic surveys are slated to begin later this year.
