Oil Project

These large blocks of oil fields have been developed in three phases. The first oil from the "Chirag" platform was produced on 7 November 1997, and the following stages were successfully implemented. New oil pipes were built and commissioned to implement the provisions of the contract on time and ensure transportation of the growing volumes of oil to the international markets:

• In late 1997, oil started to be exported to the Black Sea by Baku-Novorossiysk pipeline;
• In 1999, a pipeline from Baku to another Black Sea port – Supsa – was commissioned. The first tanker carrying Azerbaijani oil was sent to the world markets in December 1999;
• In 2002, the foundation of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan main oil pipeline was laid thanks to the continuous efforts of National Leader Heydar Aliyev. Although provided for in the Contract of the Century, the pipeline was once considered a myth, and many believed it would remain on paper. The globally significant pipeline was a crucial step towards making Azerbaijan an energy corridor. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline was inaugurated with the participation of President of the Republic Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on 25 May 2005. The first Azerbaijani oil was shipped from the Turkish port of Ceyhan in 2006.

In general, to facilitate the transportation of Azerbaijani oil from the Caspian Sea to global markets, pipelines spanning a combined length equivalent to one-tenth of the equator were established: Baku-Novorossiysk (1347 kilometers), Baku-Supsa (833 kilometers) and Baku- Tbilisi-Ceyhan (1768 kilometers).

As of the end of the third quarter of 2023, nearly $43.4 billion has been invested in the development of the "Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli" oil fields block, resulting in the extraction of approximately 580 million tons of oil.