Azerbaijan, Baku, May 14 / Trend E. Kosolapova/
The economic growth can hit 5 percent in Kazakhstan in 2013, but growth level will be depend on the realization of the planned major projects in the sphere of natural resources extraction, the director in the sovereign analytical group specializing on ratings of European countries with developing economies of international rating agency Fitch Ratings Charles Seville believes, Novosti-Kazakhstan reported.
"I expect GDP growth at about 5 percent in this year. To some extent it depends on the implementation of projects in natural resources sphere, such as Kashagan. Otherwise, if these projects are not implemented - the forecast is less than 5 percent," Seville said on Tuesday at the Fitch Ratings' conference in Almaty.
Seville also said that increase in duty on oil exports from $40 to $60 per ton in April 2013, will add 0.4 percent the country's GDP in 2013.
Kashagan is one of the largest fields discovered in the past 40 years. According to the analysts it has the potential to unite the top five largest oil companies in the world. Kazakh geologists estimate geological oil reserves at 4.8 billion tons. According to the project operator, total oil reserves are 38 billion barrels (six billion tons), with a recoverable volume of about 10 billion barrels. Natural gas reserves are estimated at over one trillion cubic meters.
At present the Kashagan project participants are Eni, Royal Dutch Shell, Exxon Mobil, Total and KazMunaiGas, which owns equal shares (16.81 per cent), as well as ConocoPhillips - 8.4 per cent and Japan's Inpex - 7.55 per cent.
The commercial oil production launch at the field has been delayed for several times. Now the companies developing the field are planning to launch oil production in 2013.