The Shurabad field is located on the coastal plain 65 km north-west of Baku and 6 km north-east of Sitalchay railway station. The field profile is characterised by numerous gaps and inconsistencies between layers.
Tectonically, the Shurabad field consists of sharply defined anticline folds surrounding the Gilazi Cape. These folds pass in a south-western direction to a large and deep syncline (lowland) where the village of Shurabad is located. The Shurabad brachyanticline, which extends in a north-western direction, is 6-7 km long and 1.5 km wide. In the south-eastern part of the fault zone, which complicates the south-western limb of the Shurabad fold, there are small mud volcano springs that emit water, gas and oil slicks. The south-western limb of the fold is relatively flat (40-50o), but is more complicated by irregularities, and the north-eastern limb is steeper (50-60o). Oil and gas have been extracted from sandstones in a number of wells in the north-eastern limb.
In the Shurabad field, oil was extracted from hand wells drilled by the local population in ancient times. In 1898, Loginov drilled 4 wells with depths ranging from 300 to 670 m. Oil sands were discovered in wells No. 1 and 3 and 16 tons of daily production was obtained.
Later, geological-mapping works were carried out in the field by D.V.Golubyatnikov (1928), M.F.Mirchinkin, A.I.Kleshkov, A.T.Romanov (1930-1931) and in 1938-1939, structural-mapping drilling was carried out. In 1940-1941, deep exploratory drilling was started in order to study the oil and gas content of Mesozoic sediments, but these works were stopped due to the outbreak of World War II. In 1950-1951, structural mapping excavation works were started in the Shurabad field. In May 1950, exploration well No. 4 drilled in the northeastern wing of the field produced 20 tons per day, 4.9 tons per day in exploration well No. 14 and an oil fountain at a height of 18 m in exploration well No. 26. There was a gas fountain from Kulul sandstones from exploration wells No. 8 and 10 drilled in the southwestern wing of the fold. In 1951, 2000 and 2005, seismic exploration works were carried out in Shurabad area.
In 1950-1952, structural-mapping drilling was started in the Shurabad field, and oil and gas were extracted from wells drilled in the north-eastern limb. Exploration well No. 4 began pumping in May 1950, producing more than 20 tons of oil per day. Later, the results of the exploratory drilling were re-evaluated, and drilling was resumed in 2000, thus, the industrial development of the field began. In the same year, exploration well No. 39 was put into operation with a gas production of 55,000 m3 in the range of 855-865 m, and production well No. 100 was put into operation with an output of 10 tons of oil (fountain method) in the range of 218-222 m. In general, the wells drilled in 2000 were operated with a daily production of 10-20 tons of oil.
From the beginning of the development up to the 1st of January 2024, only 15 wells were drilled in the Shurabad field, from which a total of 219,000 tons of oil and 47 million m3 of gas were extracted. The highest production on the field was in 2001 - 9,000 tons from 8 wells.
In order to stabilise production as much as possible and increase the oil recovery factor, it is planned to take geological and technical measures in the current and future plans, as well as continue and improve the drilling programme, and apply modern impact methods to increase permeability in reservoirs and seabed areas.
The Shurabad field is operated by Siyazanneft OGPD of SOCAR’s Azneft PU.