Oil and Gas People earlier reported that an explosion took place on a BP pipeline in Azerbaijan near the Shah Deniz oil refinery. It has since been learned that although the pipeline exports gas from the BP operated refinery, it is actually owned and managed by SOCAR, Azerbaijans state owned oil operator.

SOCAR has recently came under strong criticism for poor safety, management and maintenance standards that have resulted in the deaths of dozens of workers over the last three years. Oil and gas people recently wrote an article about how the oil giant has killed an average of 18 workers per year since 2013.

The explosion is the latest incident in a series of structural collapses, explosions and fatal incidents that leaves industry experts questioning why the organisation is getting away with such series lapses in standards without national or international intervention.

The dramatic footage shows a gas pipeline moments after a huge explosion occured and sent plumes of flames soaring into the sky.

The incident happened in close proximity to the ongoing BP Shah Deniz 2 project and Oil and Gas People has obtained this exclusive video taken minutes after the initial explosion. The video was filmed from BP’s offices on the brownfield site.

The incident happened just after 10am local time this morning and it is unclear yet if there is any injuries or fatalities. Oil and Gas People were advised by BP that as the Operator of the Sanachal Terminal they are aware that an incident happened this morning, however it had no relation to BP operations.

Employees have now been evacuated by bus to the nearby city of Baku and it is reported that the fire is still burning.

Shah Deniz gas field is the largest natural gas field in Azerbaijan. It is situated in the South Caspian Sea, off the coast of Azerbaijan, approximately 70 kilometres (43 mi) southeast of Baku, at a depth of 600 metres (2,000 ft). The field covers approximately 860 square kilometres (330 sq mi). The Shah Deniz gas and condensate field was discovered in 1999. Stretching out over 140 square kilometres, the reservoir is similar in size and shape to Manhattan Island.

The field feeds into the Sangachal Terminal 45km south of Baku where phase 2 of the Shah Deniz project is currently underway.