Oil production at Caspian offshore field Kashagan is expected to reach 13 million tons a year by 2020, Kazakh Deputy Energy Minister Magzum Mirzagaliyev said Dec.8.
"Pipelines are being replaced at Kashagan slightly ahead of schedule, at the end of 2016 the restart of commercial production is expected and by 2020 output will reach 13 million tons," he said at a government meeting.
He noted that the main task of the Ministry of Energy in the period of 2016-2018 is to maintain the positive dynamics of development of the energy sector.
Kashagan is a large oil and gas field in Kazakhstan, located in the north of the Caspian Sea. The geological reserves of Kashagan are estimated at 4.8 billion metric tons of oil. The total oil reserves amount to 38 billion barrels; some 10 billion out of them are recoverable reserves. There are large natural gas reserves at the Kashagan field - over one trillion cubic meters.
The production at the Kashagan field started September 2013, but in October, it was ceased after a gas leak in one of the main pipelines. The analysis revealed numerous cracks in the pipeline, which needed to be completely replaced. The replacement was projected to take at least two years.