The Surakhany oil field is located 16 km north-east of Baku, in the central part of the Absheron Peninsula, at a height of 70-75 m above the sea level. Tectonically, the Surakhany field resembles an asymmetrical dome extending in a meridional direction. The brachioanticline bed is of 7 km length and 3 km width. At present, 34 oil and gas facilities are operating in the field.
The field has been known for the nearby Ateshgah shrine, surface gas outlets and kerosene since ancient times. At the beginning of the 20th century, gas was extracted from a well drilled in 1900, and based on this, the field was characterised only as a gas field. However, in 1904, a well drilled to a depth of 211 m was put into operation gushing 35 tons of oil per day. Thus, the industrial development of the Surakhany field, which has large oil reserves, was started. In the initial stages of development, the upper horizons of the field, and in the later stages, the horizons of the lower part of the productive layer were involved in development. In 1904, the Absheron-Agjagil stratum, in 1907, the Surakhany stratum, in 1915-1920, the Sabunchi stratum, and in 1924-1929, the Balakhany stratum were exploited. The oil of the Surakhany formation is light in the near-ceiling parts of the field. Oil under the name “red oil” was also discovered in the intersection of the field. In general, the oil in the field is relatively high in paraffin (3.8%) and low in density.
As of January 1, 2024, 94% of oil reserves have been extracted. Since the beginning of development, 2,615 wells have been drilled in the field, 117.5 million tons of oil and 10.7 bcm of dissolved gas were extracted from these wells. At present, the Surakhany field has 396 production wells, 329 of them are operational.
Since June 2, 2006 the field has been operated by Surakhany Oil Operating Company in accordance with the Agreement on the Rehabilitation, Development and Production Sharing for the Block, including Surakhany and Garachukhur Oil Fields in the Republic of Azerbaijan between State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), SOCAR Oil Affiliate (SOA) and Rafi Oil FZE (UAE) signed on August 16, 2005.