Dubai’s Dragon Oil expands Turkmenistan investments

Dragon Oil Company, which is fully funded by the Dubai Government, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Turkmenistan State Concern “Turkmennebit”.

The agreement included expanding Dragon Oil Company’s investments in the promising Turkmen oil and gas sector, which includes three new offshore oil fields within Block 19.

The MoU was signed by Ali Rashid Al Jarwan, CEO of Dragon Oil, and Aghajanov Jovansh, Head of the State Department “Turkmenneft”.

In attendance were Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, National Leader of Turkmen Nation, Meredov Rashid, Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, Amanov Batyr, Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan, Begliyev Ashyr, Advisor to the President of Turkmenistan on Oil and Gas Issues, Babayev Maksat, Chairman of the State Concern “Turkmengas” and Agajanov Guvanch, Chairman of the State Concern “Turkmennebit”.

From the UAE side, Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Dragon Oil, Ahmed Al Hai Al Hameli, UAE Ambassador to the Republic of Turkmenistan, Ali Rashid Al Jarwan, CEO of Dragon Oil, and Saeed Salem Al Shamsi, Marketing and Corporate Communications Manager of Dragon Oil Company, attended the ceremony.

On the sidelines of the signing, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov met with Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer.

The two sides discussed ways to further enhance bilateral cooperation and explore the possibilities of developing the energy sector and oil and gas industry in Turkmenistan, given the extensive experience and Dragon Oil’s notable achievements in these areas.

Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov thanked and expressed great gratitude to Dragon Oil Company for its support of the Turkmen health sector with health equipment and medicines, especially during the COVID-19 period, as the company provided about 19 ambulances and three clinics equipped with all medical equipment intended for COVID patients, in addition to the integrated clinics it has provided in the company’s fields to serve its employees.

For his part, Ali Rashid Al Jarwan said, “The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with Turkmenistan reflects the great confidence that the company effectively cooperates with the Government of Turkmenistan, whose presence in this hospitable country dates back more than 20 years.”

Al Jarwan added, “The company is moving to expand investment in 3 oil fields with the aim of raising and increasing production in the near future. Turkmenistan is a very important oil country and has large oil and gas capabilities.

We are seeking to strengthen our presence there through new investments that will reflect positively on both parties on the one hand enhancing the state’s income from revenues and creating new work jobs, especially since the company counts more than 2,000 employees in Turkmenistan.”

He stated that the memorandum would enable the company to transfer modern technology in the oil sector while making technical and financial investments to develop the fields covered by the memorandum. He emphasised that the memorandum marks the inception of what promises to be an excellent series of relations forged with Turkmenistan.

Al Jarwan stated, “Block 19 includes the three new fields close to the Cheleken Contract Area in which we operate the concession, where we conducted a seismic survey at a cost of $35 million. The results of the analysis we conducted showed that Block 19 is promising. Our expansion plans in Turkmenistan are located in an area close to the Cheleken Contract Area, which is a promising area, and we know it well.”

He pointed out that the next stage after signing the MoU is to drill two to three appraisal wells, while the third stage is the stage of development and exploration of the new field aimed at production of crude oil.

Dragon Oil has been engaged in oil and gas cooperation with Turkmenistan on the basis of a production sharing agreement since 2000. Its primary focus is on the extraction of hydrocarbon resources in the Caspian Sea, in the Cheleken Contract Area.

WAM