SOCAR and MOL Group have signed a Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) for exploration and production in Azerbaijan’s Shamakhi–Gobustan area.

The agreement was signed by Rovshan Najaf, President of SOCAR, and Zsolt Hernádi, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MOL Group.

Under the project, MOL Group, as the operator, holds a 65% stake, while SOCAR holds 35%.

Within the framework of the project, seismic surveys are planned to begin in early 2026, followed by the drilling at a later stage.

Notably, this fully agreed document marks an important stage in the strategic partnership between MOL Group and SOCAR, following the signing of the Heads of Terms Agreement during Baku Energy Week on 3 June 2025. The new agreement builds upon the companies’ previous successful cooperation.

For reference, MOL Group entered the Azerbaijani market in 2020 by acquiring a 9.57% stake in the Azeri–Chirag–Gunashli (ACG) field and an 8.9% effective stake in the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline transporting crude oil to the Ceyhan terminal.

About SOCAR

SOCAR is one of the leading international energy companies. In order to ensure the economic interests of the Azerbaijani people, SOCAR is a major operator and participant in a number of transnational projects across the country and abroad. The company is active in all the oil and gas industry value chains. Exploration of oil and gas fields, production, processing and transportation of oil, gas and gas condensate constitute the main part of the operations of SOCAR. SOCAR also exports natural gas, oil and petrochemical products to the country's market, as well as international markets. The company's goal is to become a vertical integrated international energy company with advanced experience in the field of effective operation, social and environmental responsibility. As an important EU energy supplier, SOCAR plays a special role in the sustainable economic development of Europe.

About MOL Group

MOL Group is an international, integrated oil, gas, petrochemicals and consumer retail company, headquartered in Budapest, Hungary. It is active in over 30 countries with a dynamic international workforce of 25,000 people and a track record of more than 100 years. MOL Group operates three refineries and two petrochemical plants under integrated supply chain-management in Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia, and owns a network of almost 2400 service stations across 10 countries in Central & South-Eastern Europe. MOL’s exploration and production activities are supported by more than 85 years’ experience in the field of hydrocarbons and 30 years in the injection of CO2. At the moment, there are production activities in 8 countries and exploration assets in 9 countries. MOL is committed to transform its traditional fossil-fuel-based operations into a low-carbon, sustainable business model and aspires to become net carbon neutral by 2050 while shaping the low-carbon circular economy in Central and Eastern Europe.