Sitting astride the continents of than 15 countries. Europe and Asia and covering an area of 149,200 square miles, the Caspian Sea is the largest inland sea in the world. With more than 240 billion barrels of proven and possible oil reserves and 463 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of gas, the Caspian region contains 15% of the world’s hydrocarbon resources. These figures put the region in the world’s limelight as, according to the U.S. Energy InformationAdministration (EIA), the area is home to the second-largest proven reserve of oil and third-largest reserve of gas. Although these figures are intended to impress, total production for the entire region has yet to reach the table of the top 20 global producers. Today’s numbers do not fully reflect the historical importance of the region let alone the future potential, which draws many an international E&P company to these shores.