Shah Deniz 2009 Output Forecast Lowered To 7.2 BCM - Source

Production at the BP PLC (BP)-led Shah Deniz field in the Caspian offshore will total 7.2 billion cubic meters this year, down from an earlier forecast of 7.5 billion, an official at Azerbaijan's state oil company said Wednesday.

Last month, BP said output at the field would reach 7.5 billion cubic meters of gas and 1.9 million tons of condensate this year.

All production at the Shah Deniz field - a joint project between BP, Total S.A. (TOT), StatoilHydro ASA (STO), OAO Lukoil Holdings (LKOH.RS) and the Azerbaijani state oil company Socar - was halted for one week on Sept. 13 due to planned maintenance, said the Socar official, who asked not to be named.

Due to the maintenance work, the flow of gas through the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzerum pipeline to Georgia and Turkey has been stopped completely, the official said.

Production from the Shah Deniz field totaled 3.4 billion cubic meters of gas and 900,000 metric tons of condensate in the first six months of 2009.

Company Web site: www.socar.az

-By Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen and Aida Sultanova, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]