On September 1, 2026, a meeting across the Caspian Sea with the East was taking place inside the Azerbaijan Ministry of Energy building. The senior team of CNOOC has signed a memorandum of understanding with Azerbaijan State Oil Company (SOCAR) to establish a collaborative framework covering the entire industry chain, from upstream oil and gas exploration to green energy development. This is the first time that Chinese energy companies have deeply embedded themselves in the core energy circle of the Caspian Sea with a systematic layout.

From point projects to full chain collaboration

The memorandum signed between CNOOC and SOCAR covers core aspects such as joint investment in upstream oil and gas exploration and development at home and abroad, supply of complete sets of technical equipment, engineering design and construction, and full life cycle operation and maintenance support. It has completed the upgrading of the model from scattered project participation to deep collaboration across the entire industry chain. The Azerbaijani Ministry of Energy has explicitly included potential energy development projects in the Caspian Sea and the green energy industry in the long-term cooperation system, breaking through the limitations of traditional oil and gas single cooperation models.

The Caspian Sea hotbed where international giants converge

At the time of CNOOC's entry, BP、 Total Energy ADNOC、 International giants such as Lukoil have deeply rooted themselves. The Abu Xielong oil and gas block has reserves of 350 billion cubic meters of natural gas and 100 million tons of condensate oil, jointly held by SOCAR, Total, and ADNOC. The second phase expansion is expected to supply gas by 2029; The total investment of BP led Shahdeniz gas field is 2.9 billion US dollars, and the project progress has exceeded 30%. After completion, it can add 50 billion cubic meters of natural gas and 25 million barrels of condensate oil. The three-dimensional release of regional oil and gas production capacity provides cooperation space for China to enter the segmented track. Keywords: the Belt and Road news, oil and gas, new energy, enterprises going to sea

Offshore wind power opens second growth curve

This cooperation will incorporate offshore wind power from the Caspian Sea into the core system. On July 31, 2026, the Afghan government designated 711.4 square kilometers of seawater as an exclusive renewable development area, ending the exploration phase of offshore wind power without institutionalized support. Previously, China Energy Engineering Corporation had launched a feasibility study for 200MW offshore wind power, and CNOOC's entry further opened up the synergy channel between oil and gas and new energy. In the first half of 2026, Azerbaijan produced 13.3 million tons of oil and 25.4 billion cubic meters of gas, exported 10.5 million tons of oil and 12.7 billion cubic meters of natural gas. The decades long stable production performance of the industry has laid a solid foundation for long-term deep cultivation.Editor/Gao Xue