ISABEL RUBIO ARROYO | Tungsteno
Almost 100 kilometres off the coast of Baku, in the middle of the Caspian Sea, rises Neft Daşlari, an industrial city built on platforms. Its name, meaning “Oil Rocks,” reflects its function: a vast network of extraction wells and processing plants linked together by kilometres of steel bridges. Accessible only by a lengthy boat ride from the mainland, this enigmatic city floats in the middle of the world's largest enclosed body of water.
A motorway in the middle of the sea
Founded in 1949, Neft Daşlari began with platforms built atop deliberately sunken ships. Over time, it evolved into a vast industrial city, linked by more than 200 kilometres of trestle bridges and supported by nearly 100 kilometres of pipelines transporting oil and gas. At its peak, the city boasted nearly 2,000 oil wells and some 320 production plants.
But Neft Daşlari is about more than industry—it has homes, shops, a theatre, a heliport and even a soccer field. Trees were even planted atop steel structures, and at its height, the city housed over 5,000 inhabitants. In recent decades, however, the population has dwindled and much of the infrastructure has fallen into disrepair, with some parts claimed by the sea.
Oil Rocks has served as the dramatic setting for numerous documentaries and films, including scenes from the 1999 James Bond film The World Is Not Enough. It has also inspired renowned Azerbaijani artists, such as composer Gara Garayev and artist Tahir Salahov. Filmmaker Marc Wolfensberger, who shot the movie Oil Rocks: City Above the Sea, described the site as “beyond anything I had seen before.” As he told CNN, it was like “a motorway in the middle of the sea” that stretched out “like an octopus.”
Trailer for the documentary Oil Rocks: City Above the Sea. Credit: Marc Wolfensberger
"The Island of Seven Ships," a symbol in Azerbaijan
To shield the structure from the wind and waves of the Caspian Sea, seven decommissioned ships were deliberately sunk, their hulls forming an artificial bay around the original island. “Some of those ships are visible on the surface of the water where they were buried,” Mirvari Gahramanli, head of the Oil-Workers Rights Protection Organisation, told CNN. In Azerbaijan some refer to Neft Daşlari as “the island of seven ships” and even “the eighth wonder of the world,” she added.
Today, the oil field remains operational. Over the decades, 1,983 wells have been drilled, with 432 still active. According to SOCAR, Azerbaijan’s state-run oil company and the operator of Neft Daşlari, the field produced an average of 2,865 tons of oil per day as of 1 January 2024. Since production began, the site has yielded a total of 179.8 million tonnes of crude oil and 14.092 billion cubic metres of natural gas. Peak output was reached in 1967, when it produced 7.6 million tonnes of oil—about 4.5% of the total cumulative volume.
The industrial city is still operational with more than 400 active wells. Credit: SOCAR
The uncertain future of the “floating” city
Neft Daşlari’s importance has declined in recent decades, overshadowed by the development of larger fields and fluctuating oil prices. “The production at Neft Daşlari supplies only a minor part of Azerbaijan's oil production,” explains Brenda Shaffer, an energy expert at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School, who has advised oil and gas companies in the Caspian region. As output has declined, so too has the population, now estimated at around 2,000. Moreover, the floating city has not been without controversy: beyond the danger faced by those living or working there due to extreme weather conditions, Gahramanli has raised concerns about the discharge of raw sewage and reports of oil spills.
The floating city’s production now accounts for only a small share of Azerbaijan’s oil output. Credit: SOCAR
With its reserves gradually running dry, the future of this sprawling offshore settlement remains uncertain. Shaffer suggests it could one day become a tourist attraction. Filmmaker Marc Wolfensberger envisions a different future: “It’s really the cradle of offshore oil exploration,” he said, imagining it repurposed as a museum. As for the risk of it sinking—either due to structural fatigue or the effect of climate change—Mirvari Gahramanli was firm when asked by the BBC: “The island is not about to sink and, at the moment, no such risk is foreseen.”
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