DUSHANBE, October 14, 2008, Asia-Plus — According to Azim Ibrohim, the head of Tajikistan’s main Geology Directorate, Zarubezhneftegaz, subsidiary of Russian state-controlled gas company Gazprom, has submitted to the directorate a research report “instead of familiarizing Tajik geologists with the results of the seismic survey.
After the first year of its operation in Tajikistan, the Russian company announced that it had completed seismic survey at the Sargazon field in Khatlon’s Danghara district. “Meanwhile, we have not yet received the report on the results of work carried out at the field,” Ibrohim said.
According to him, two years ago, Gazprom was also granted license for exploration of oil and gas reserves of the Rengan field in the Roudaki district. “However, they have not yet started exploration work there,” Ibrohim said, adding that the Russian company has also received licenses for exploration of gas and oil reserves of the Shohambari and Sariqamish fields, which are also located in the Roudaki district.
Asia-Plus has failed to get any information about this issue from the Zarubezhneftegaz office in Dushanbe. They said that authorized persons that could give any reliable information on that issue are currently outside Tajikistan.
We will recall that Russia”s state-controlled gas company Gazprom in December 2005 received two licenses from the Tajik government to explore oil and gas reserves. The Rengan field, located 20 kilometers from the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, has possible gas reserves of 35 billion cubic meters, according to Gazprom; Sargazon, located in Khatlon province 150 kilometers from Dushanbe, has possible reserves of 30 billion cubic meters.
In March 2006, Tajik energy minister and the Gazprom head signed a memorandum in Dushanbe on the creation of an oil and gas joint venture. Under the deal, Gazprom develops four gas fields – Sariqamish, Rengan, Sargazon and Olimtoi in Tajikistan.
In a report released at a press conference in Dushanbe, the main geology directorate head revealed on October 13 that the government suspended operating licenses of two companies, engaged in mining gold and silver in the country, for three months. According to him, operating license of another gold-mining company will be revoked in the near future.
