Rozwój bazy surowcowej przemysłu naftowego i gazowego ZSRR

Abstract

DEVELOPMENT OF MINERAL RESOURCES OF OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY IN THE USSR

Summary

Mineral raw material base of oil and gas industry of the USSR is prepared by numerous research workers of scientific-research organizations and enterprises. Character of this problem discussed in the present paper is based mainly on the materials concerning oil and gas perspectives of the Soviet Union.
During the evaluation of the individual regions of the Soviet Union, sedimentary basins characterized by deep subsidence and long duration, under conditions of favourable circumstances for the formation of oil and gas deposits, are considered as perspective areas.
The main perspectives for oil and gas in the Soviet Union are related to the large structural elements, i.e. to the Russian, West-Siberian, East-Siberian and Central-Asia platforms. Numerous foredeeps and intramoutain basins connected: with the Alpine, Hercynian, Caledonian and Baikalian orogenies in the Caucasus, Central Asia, Siberia and Far-East areas are also promising. The whole complex of the sedimentary formations, beginning with the Sinian and ending with the Cainozoic deposits, is oil and gas-bearing or perspective when considered from the petroliferous point of view.
Before the World War I, the production of oil in Russia amounted in 1913: to 9.2 mil. tons, and 83% of the whole output fell on the oil deposits in the Azerbaijan.
Before the Great Patriotic War (1940), the production of oil in the Soviet Union was more than 31 mil. tons. The part produced in the area of Azerbaijan covered 71.6% of the whole output, the percentage falling on the area of Russian Federation being 22.7.
A considerable development of petroleum production was noted shortly after the World War II. Already in 1951, the output of oil was 42.2 mil tons, increasing: in 1956 to 83.6 mil. tons, and in 1960 amounted to 147.8 mil. tons to obtain: approximately 265 mil. tons in 1966.
Before the Great Patriotic War, the production of oil was mainly from the Tertiary deposits of the Fore-Caucasus area, and from the south-eastern depression of the Caucasus and the Turkmen areas. After a discovery of payable oil and gas deposits within the Russian platform area, particularly after 1944, when commercial oil contents were found to occur in the Devonian deposits, the role of the Tertiary oil and gas notably decreased, and the main production of oil in the Soviet Union was based on the Palaeozoic formations.
Payable oil and gas-bearing deposits discovered in the last years in the Western Siberia areas, where oil and gas are related to the Mesozoic formations (Cretaceous, Jurassic), and considerable oil and gas deposits found to occur in analogous formations of Mangyshlak, and of the Viliuysk depression in the East-Siberian platform, allow us to state that the development of oil and gas industry will, most probably, be connected with the Mesozoic formations.
The intense development of gas production also falls on the period of the Soviet power. In 1925 the gas production was 172 mil. m³, and increased in 1930 to about 520 mil. m³, in l935 to 1506 mil. m³, to attain in 1940 about 3.2 mlrd. m³. During both pre-revolution and Soviet power periods, up to 1940, however, the gas production was based mainly on the passing gas extracted together with oil. The main production at gas (78%) took place in the Azerbaijan regions.
A further intense development of the gas production was noted during the period of the Great Patriotic War, when rich gas deposits were discovered within the Saratov region. But still more considerable development of the gas production is connected with the post-war time, mainly due to the discovery of huge gas deposits in the Ukraine, Volga, Noth Caucasus, Central Asia and in other areas.
In 1950, the total production of gas in the USSR was already 3.7 mlrd. m³, in 1955 – 5.8 mlrd. m³; 1960 – 37:1 mlrd. m³, and in 1966 as much as 140 mlrd. m³.
The intense development of oil and gas production in the Soviet Union in the post-war time was related both to the results of scientific researches connected with the establishing of the conditions of formation of oil and gas deposits, and with the explanation of their spatial distribution, and to the realization of numerous successful prospecting and reconnaissance works in search for oil and gas deposits. So far, prospecting works, have practically comprised all oil and gas-bearing regions of the country. In certain cases, the research works were realized as a part of regional geological and geophysical surveys, accompanied by various drillings; in other cases they also included some detailed prospecting and reconnaissance works. As a result of this considerable oil and gas resources were discovered and recognized in the old regions of already developed oil and gas industry. Commercial oil and gas deposits were also found in the eastern areas of the country, also in these regions in which they were previously unknown. This discovery points to the new rich oil and gas regions within the West Siberia, in the area of the Kara Kum platform and the Mangyshlak, were new commercial resources are evaluated. Both the old and the new resources assure the further development of oil and gas production of the country.