Kazakhstan Oil and Gas Minister on status of major oil projects

Kazakhstan Oil and Gas Minister Sauat Mynbayev spoke about the status of major oil production projects in Kazakhstan. According to the Minister, Russia may join the third phase of Karachaganak project, Tengrinews.kz reports. Speaking at the 7th Eurasian forum KAZENERGY called A World in Transition: Shaping Sustainable Energy Future, Sauat Mynbayev noted that Kashagan is expected to bring profits in 2013. “As for Kashagan, you know that all the issues of the first stage are in the past. This May we have signed an agreement regulating all issues. The progress is evident. We expect to start the commercial production in the period between January and June 2013. As for the second phase of Kashagan, the government is waiting for Consortium to sign certain documents. Evidently, we will have several sub-stages there. Preliminary works are in process,” the Minister said. Meanwhile, according to Mynbayev, all disputes on Karachaganak have been resolved. He reminded that KazMunaiGas received a 10-percent share in the project. “We are ready and the parties are ready to expand the project into its third stage. We have discussed some of the parameters of the expansion with Russia as well, since a significant volume of gas is supplied to Orenburg gas processing plant. Another part of products is expected to be supplied to the gas processing plant that will be built at the territory of Kazakhstan. I suppose that all parties are interested in accelerating approvals of all these three projects,” Mynbayev said. Besides, a so-called Future Gorwth project in Tengiz field is being reviewed by the shareholders. “The Ministry expects that it will be submited to the central commission for exploration sortly. Based on the results of a preliminary review, the Ministry believes that this project complies with partners’ and Kazakhstan’s interests,” Sauat Mynbayev stated. By Gulnara Zhandagulova