ExxonMobil makes Caspian oil strike

The Texas company said the discoveries are the third and fourth successes in their 1.4-million acre North Caspian Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) area and will be studied further to determine if they are commercially viable. The oil industry estimates that the North Caspian PSA, a partnership of the two nations and several oil companies, holds more than 9 billion barrels of oil. The discoveries, announced Monday, were made on artificial islands in the Kashagan Southwest and Aktote prospects. Aktote struck oil at the 14,000-foot depth and measured a flow at 1,550 barrels per day. The Kashagan discovery occured at 19,275 feet and flowed at 2,100 bpd, although through a wider diameter flow line. The Caspian is considered one of the great new oil-producing areas but development has been slowed by a lack of pipelines.