Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct. 6 /Trend/
Kazakhstan will consider joining Nabucco gas pipeline project, which envisages gas supplies from the Caspian region and the Middle East to the EU countries, Platts reported according to Lyazzat Kiinov, the Deputy Energy Minister of Kazakhstan.
"In the future, Kazakhstan will consider joining Nabucco as a potential gas supplier if new high-potential gas fields are developed domestically and free gas volumes emerge," Kiinov said on Thursday at the energy forum in Almaty.
Currently Azerbaijan, in particular, the gas produced within the second phase of the Shah Deniz Field, is considered as main gas supply source for Nabucco project. Iraqi and Turkmen gas can be used at the further stage of realization of the project. The pipeline's maximum capacity will hit 31 billion cubic meters per year.
According to Kiinov, currently, spare gas volumes are limited in Kazakhstan.
Earlier, the European Union proposed Kazakhstan to join the Trans-Caspian pipeline project designed to transport gas to Europe. "For the EU such a pipeline project will be a very important contribution to the development of the Southern Gas Corridor, European Commissioner Gunther Oettinger Oettinger said. This shows how much the EU appreciates this project and cooperation in the region. We would welcome Kazakhstan's participation in the Southern Corridor in the future".
According to Kiinov's forecasts, in Kazakhstan gas production will more than double to 92.2 bcm per year by 2020.
He said that the country is expected to produce 40.5 billion cu m of gas in 2011, up from 37.4 billion cu m in 2010. The country's gas exports are to reach 21.6 billion cu m in 2011, compared with 21.3 billion cu m in 2010.
Edited by: A. Badalova