SOCAR’s Baku Oil Refinery chooses Baker Hughes Emissions Abatement Solution

Baker Hughes and SOCAR announced the signing of a contract for an integrated gas recovery and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) removal system that will significantly reduce downstream flaring at SOCAR’s Heydar Aliyev Oil Refinery in Baku, Azerbaijan. The contract was signed at COP29 in Baku, in the presence of Baker Hughes Chairman and CEO Lorenzo Simonelli and SOCAR President Rovshan Najaf.

Building on the pledges formalized by Azerbaijan’s entry into the Global Methane Pledge and the COP28 presidency’s Oil & Gas Decarbonization Charter (OGDC), the project is a tangible step toward ending routine flaring by 2030 at SOCAR’s site, using innovative applications of Baker Hughes' existing and field-proven emissions abatement technologies. The project is expected to recover flare gas equivalent up to 7 million Nm³ of methane per year, and further reduce CO2 emissions by up to 11,000 tons per year.

Baker Hughes will integrate its innovative gas recovery and H₂S removal system into the refinery’s existing infrastructure to help abate methane and sulfur – two of the most potent greenhouse gas emissions – and remove hazardous H₂S from the site. The system will also enable SOCAR to use the recovered gas, which would have previously been flared, as fuel for the refinery. This will reduce overall fuel gas consumption and operating costs at the refinery, creating new opportunities for value enhancement and efficiency gains.

The project's rapid progression from concept to contract in only nine months demonstrates the two companies’ commitment to driving action and highlights the value achieved through close collaboration and early engagement. Project execution will begin immediately, with full commissioning targeted within 24 months.

This integrated gas recovery and H²S removal system is part of Baker Hughes’ broad portfolio of emissions abatement solutions capable of improving productivity, efficiency and delivering increased value at scale across customer operations.