RWE to study reserve potential offshore Azerbaijan

German energy company RWE Dea said Tuesday it signed an agreement to examine the oil and gas potential in the shallow waters off the coast of Azerbaijan.

"The agreement gives us the opportunity to deepen our knowledge about the subsurface in a highly prolific area of the Caspian Sea," Hans-Hermann Ecke, a vice president in charge of new ventures for the company, said in a statement.

The company signed a joint study agreement with the State Oil Co. of Azerbaijan Republic to explore the prospects for hydrocarbons in the shallow waters south off the Absheron peninsula in Azerbaijan.

Neither RWE nor SOCAR offered an estimate of the reserve potential other than to say the basin is near other "world class oil and gas discoveries."

Azerbaijan is host to the Shah Deniz gas complex in the Caspian Sea. A consortium led by BP is working on developing the field. The second stage, which should be delivering gas by 2019, will be able to produce more than 560 billion cubic feet of natural gas per year, adding to the 310 billion produced annually from the initial phase.

Norwegian energy company Statoil said Tuesday it sold off 10 percent of its 25 percent stake in the second stage to BP and SOCAR for $1.45 billion.