Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 16 / Trend E. Ismayilov /
Kazakhstan links delaying of the project on establishment the Kazakh Caspian Oil Transportation System (CCOTS) with some circumstances associated with a delay of the second phase of Kashagan field development in the Caspian Sea.
"The second phase of Kashagan field, which involves getting big oil, is postponed to 2018-2019 because of the operators", Kazakh Ambassador to Azerbaijan Serik Primbetov said in the Trend Agency's conference room.
Partner-companies on Kashagan project: Eni, KMG Kashagan BV (KMG subsidiary), Total, ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell each have 16.81 percent stake, ConocoPhillips - 8,4 percent, Inpex - 7,56 percent. A joint operating company NCOC was established by the participants of the project.
He said that huge capital investments are required for the second phase. The oil is located at a big depth with very high pressure and sulfur content. "The operators think that it is necessary to prepare for this. In this regard, launching the second phase of Kashagan development was postponed for 2018-2019", the diplomat said.
The deposit is located in the north of the Caspian Sea in shallow water, where water depth is only 5-6 meters. It is necessary to build an oil pipeline stretching about 400 kilometers from the field to Kuryk port to transport oil. "We must deliver oil to Baku by heavy tankers with capacity of 60,000 tons rather than 12,000 tons, Primbetov said. Oil can be transported from Baku via the BTC and railway to the Black Sea ports of Georgia.
That is why, the CCOTS project is delayed until large amounts of oil are received from the Kashagan field. Primbetov said that after getting "big oil" from the Kashagan field, the production volumes in the country will reach 140 million tons.
The Trans-Caspian System is being created for delivering Kazakh oil from the Kashagan field.
Kazakh and Azerbaijani national oil companies - KazMunayGaz and SOCAR signed the agreement on the Kazakh Caspian Oil Transportation System in Baku in late 2008. This system must provide the possibility of transporting the Kashagan oil via the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus to the world markets to the amount of 23 million tons at an initial stage with a further increase up to 35-56 million tons per year.
Kashagan is one of the largest deposits in the world, discovered for the last 30 years with geological oil reserves of 4.8 billion tons. The commercial production was repeatedly postponed. At the moment, it is scheduled for late 2012.