Production costs will drive oil and gas prices up

Head of the World Petroleum Council Renato Bertani believes that oil and gas prices will keep growing from year to year, Tengrinews.kz reports citing the expert as saying at the press-conference in Astana after the 7th Eurasian Forum KAZENERGY. "It is difficult for us in the World Petroleum Council to have an opinion and a position on certain market conditions in a certain county. But we believe that market liberalization is a very positive thing for the industry in general. The demand and supply indexes clearly show that the prices - of oil, and to some extent of gas - will continue growing because of the production costs. (...) The old law of supply and demand tells us that we will see a general strengthening of oil and gas prices," Bernati of the Petroleum Council said commenting escalation of oil prices in Kazakhstan. Director of Kazakhstan Association of Oil, Gas and Energy companies KazEnergy Zhanbulat Sarsenov expressed an opinion that the prices have to be adequate to the country's economy. "If we retain these prices regardless of the economic conditions in our country and in the near-border areas, we will inevitable have to face a price leap at some point. This could be a drop or an escalation. But it will be a stressful situation. Those who have large production volumes and 3-month stocks, would be capable of keeping prices minimal and retain their efficiency. But the rest would have to raise the prices. This would put is into the situation similar to the one we currently have in Aktau. There are long lines at KazMunaiGas petrol stations, because they offer the cheapest gasoline. Other filling stations have no lines but their prices are higher," Sarsenov explained. By Gulnara Zhandagulova