Lukoil will help reboot Kalamkas-Sea, Khazar, Auezov project - KazMunayGasLukoil’s acquisition of a 50% stake in Kalamkas-Khazar Operating LLP (KKO) enormously benefited the Kalamkas-Sea, Khazar, Auezov project in the Caspian Sea, said Kuanysh Kudaibergenov, the deputy chairman of the management board of National Company KazMunayGas (KMG).“After lengthy negotiations, KazMunayGas attracted Lukoil as a strategic partner, which had earlier implemented a number of similar projects in the Russian sector of the Caspian Sea. It is worth noting that the strategic partner owns necessary technologies for development of offshore fields, which has allowed us to reboot the project. Otherwise, the project would still have stayed “on the shelf”, waiting for an investor,” Kudaibergenov is quoted as saying in a press release issued by KMG.Previously, the Kalamkas-Sea and Khazar fields had been included in subsoil use contracts with North Caspian Operating Company (NCOC) and Caspi Meruerty Operating Company (CMOC) with the participation of Shell and Oman Oil.“For a number of reasons, the development of the fields was delayed, also because their commercial operation was deemed to be economically unfeasible. In the end, the companies refused to invest in the project and returned the contract areas to the government. Taking into account the geographical proximity and geological similarity of these fields, the government later decided to merge these projects into one subsoil use contract,” Kudaibergenov said.The project is technically very complex and requires investment of about $6.5 billion, he added.“For the first time ever, an oil field in Kazakhstan will be developed using offshore metal platforms. These structures will be built at the dockyard in the Mangistau region, which has not been in use since the completion of construction work at Kashagan,” Kudaibergenov said.Lukoil PJSC acquired quite recently a 50% stake in Kalamkas-Khazar Operating LLP (KKO) for $200 million.In September 2023, KMG and Lukoil completed procedures for the sale of a 50% stake in Kalamkas-Khazar Operating LLP to Lukoil.KMG and Lukoil now own on a parity basis Kalamkas-Khazar Operating, which is the operator of the Kalamkas Sea, Khazar and Auezov project in the Caspian Sea.On February 9, 2023 KazMunayGas and LUKOIL sealed a number of agreements relating to the development of the Kalamkas Sea, Khazar and Auezov blocks in the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea, including an agreement on the sale and purchase of a 50% holding in the charter capital of Kalamkas-Khazar Operating LLP and an agreement on terms and conditions for the financing of the project by its participants.Kalamkas-Sea, Khazar and Auezov fields lie offshore the Caspian Sea about 60 km away from the coast and at a depth of 7-9 meters. The production is expected to start in 2028 and will total 3-4 million tonnes per year. The development costs are estimated at about $5 billion.Kalamkas-Sea, which was discovered in 2002, is located 120 km southwest of Kashagan and very close to the Khazar field. The combined recoverable reserves of the Kalamkas-Sea and Khazar fields are estimated at 67 million tonnes of oil and 9 billion cubic meters of gas. (ICE ALMATY)

Fonte notizia: INTERFAX