Azerbaijan State Oil and Industry University, Baku, Azerbaijan:

Z. Dzh. Efendieva, Associate Professor, Candidate of Engineering Sciences, efendi2005@rambler.ru

In view of expansion of mineral resources and mineral reserves recently, Azerbaijan pays increasingly much attention to exploration and development of natural bitumen. The main bituminous deposits in the Republic adjoin oil and gas provinces (Absheron, Shamakhy–Gobustan and Lower Kuria) and zones of mud volcanism. Bitumen is genetically connected with oil and forms as a result of supergene transformations in outflow from exposed reservoirs or shallow impregnated fractures, lenses etc. Natural bitumen and bitumen produced in processing of high-viscous oil are widely used in road construction in USA, Canada and in West Europe. The current conditions and prospects for the development of commercial-value bitumen deposits in Azerbaijan are discussed. The types and classification of bitumen are described in detail. Molten bitumen resources are mostly concentrated in Klych, Kirkishlag and Airantokan deposits, and alsphaltite bitumen mostly occurs in Binagadi, Shubany and Zygilpiri deposits. The distribution and composition of bitumen are reflective of their essentially different types and qualities, which should be taken into account in feasibility study of different technologies. The most promising bitumen mining projects in Azerbaijan are Kirmaki, Binagadi, Cheildere and Shubany. Azerbaijan also holds smaller bitumen deposits such as Fatmai, Siyanshor, Baku, Digyakh, Pirallakhi, Eldaroyugu and other. These deposits are geochemically similar to the major bitumen occurrences.

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