Oil Chronicles
Oil Chronicles
Оctober 2013
October 2 NC «KazMunayGas» JSC (KMG) and international company «Schlumberger Logelco» Inc. have entered into a memorandum of understanding on cooperation within the 21-th Kazakhstan International "Oil & Gas" Exhibition and Conference KIOGE in Almaty. The main areas of cooperation under this Memorandum are evaluation and optimization of KMG deposits production, exploration, exploitation, production. The memorandum also provides for the training of KMG technicians through practical experience and by sending to Schlumberger units and training facilities.
In his interview to the Media, Deputy Chairman of the Board of KMG Kurmangazy Iskaziyev stated that "Schlumberger is the leading oilfield services company with extensive international experience of working in the most difficult conditions and solving severe technological problems”. According to Iskaziev, this Memorandum will allow the Kazakhstani company to revaluate the potential jointly with the geologic technological service, to develop joint activities, to implement all the improvements to the best world standards. "This concerns quality boring, quality full repair, quality borehole geophysical studies that together will enable us to produce oil well on our fields," said Iskaziyev.
October 4 The Board of Directors of Exploration Production KMG JSC elected Deputy General Production Director Kairbek Eleusinov as a member of the Board of Directors of the company. As previously reported, Deputy General Production Director, member of the Board of Directors Bakyt Imanbayev resigned his post from September 28, 2013 in connection with his transfer to another job. KMG EP Board of Director as of 10th of October: Abat Nurseitov - Director General; Kairbek Eleusinov-Deputy Director General for production; Benjamin Fraser - Chief Financial Officer - financial controller; Malik Saulebaj - Managing Director of Legal Affairs; Botagoz Ashirbekova, Managing Director for Management and Staff Development, informs the press service of the company.
Memorandum of cooperationbetween «Sberbank» JSC, «D»Eni»z Bank» and «TRG Petrol Ticaret Rompetrol group» was signed during the Kazakh-Turkish Business Forum which was held in Astana. The document provides for cooperation development and «TRG Petrol Ticaret Rompetrol group»» entrance to the Turkish market transaction support. The nearest plans of the «Rompetrol group» in Turkey is the choice of the target company with the developed infrastructure of oil distribution plan, its comprehensive study, assessment of the company, total investment process, financing and acquisition.
At a later stage - integration of new companies into Rompetrol, management of the acquired company and retail network. Development of other opportunities is the trade of petroleum products and liquefied gas”, said the head of «Rompetrol group» unit in Turkey, Talgat Chinikeev, speaking at the Forum. He stressed that «Rompetrol group» considers «Sberbank» as a reliable partner on a number of fronts. According to him, Turkey is experiencing high growth rates of petroleum products consumption, including diesel fuel, against a background of significant volumes of imports of oil from Kazakhstan.
October 6, after the repair works completion, drilling at the Kashagan field were opened, production resumed without complications, as informed the press service of the Oil and Gas Ministry. As is known, in the morning of September 24, 2013, during the routine inspection of the pipeline, running from the island of D to the “Bolashak” factory, a minor gas leak was detected. A leak was detected at a distance of 2.5 km from the plant in the sanitary protection zone.
The Emergency Department of Atyrau district was immediately notified of the incident. An investigation in accordance with the requirements of technical safety was conducted. The permissible level increase of hydrogen sulfide in the air was not identified, no one was hurt. All production facilities of land and sea units were transferred to the standby, oil production was suspended. The situation inside and outside the buffer zone remained under control.
Atyrau Emergency Department jointly with Atyrau Regional Ecology Department Department initiated audits on this incident. In accordance with the standard practice, the ground part of the gas pipeline was isolated, pressure release and nitrogen purification were executed in order to ensure safe access. In the evening of September 26 excavation works on pipeline unlocking were started. Inspection of the pipeline section was started on September 27. The leak source was detected, repair work was started on September 28. At this moment, the cause has been determined, repair works have been completed. All works are carried out in strict accordance with the requirements of national and international safety standards, informs the press service of the Ministry of Oil and Gas.
The British company «Max Petroleum» Plc has discovered oil in the process of appraisal wells drilling at the Uytas and Northern Eskene fields in Western Kazakhstan, as stated in the company report. «Max Petroleum» Plc is a British company specialising in oil and gas exploration and production, the company activities are concentrated in Kazakhstan. The company owns the blocks "A" and "E" of the East Alibek contract area, as well as the Astrakhan block.
The Amangel′dinskoe gas field (AGF) in Mojynkumskiy region of Zhambyl district has celebrated ten years. Over a span of 10 years, "Amangeldy gas" is the only organization that is engaged in the exploration, production and development of hydrocarbon deposits in Zhambyl region. Thanks to its activities, the price of cubic meter of gas for Zhambyl residents is lower than on the average in the Republic. In October 2003 at the compressor station, the President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev has started pilot operation of AGM gas condensate field AGM.
According to the Director General of KazTransGas JSC Serik Sultangali, since the exploitation of the deposit has started, more than 3 billion cubic meters of gas has been produced. The company has overcome this mark this year, on the Day of the Constitution eve. The first billion-dollar milestone production of "blue fuel" was met in September 2007, the second in July 2010. It is planned to produce 321.2 million cubic meters of gas and 20.5 thousand tons of gas condensate in 2013.
Altogether , 26 wells are being exploited at the Amangeldy site, the start of exploitation of the 27-th well is scheduled for November. Extensive seismic surveys have revealed deposits of hydrocarbons at the Koskuduk and Sultankuduk fields, the preparations for the drilling works are already being made. Construction of the appraisal well №8 is started at the Airakty field, works to quantify volumes of the Anabai field are in progress. In 2013, the project on experimental and industrial exploitation of deposits of Zharkum was executed, the project documentation of construction of the "Amangeldy-Zharkum" gas pipeline is being developed.
Kazakhstan proposesthe creation of an international consortium of oil and gas companies for exploration of pre-Caspian basin, the Prime Minister of the RoK Serik Akhmetov said in the course of the VIII Eurasian Forum Kazenergy. "There will be a special round--table conference within the framework of the forum, the purpose of which is to discuss “Eurasia” – a groundbreaking Kazakh project.
The issue is the creation of an international consortium of oil and gas companies for exploration of deep horizons of pre-Caspian basin on land and at sea, on the territory of the RoK and the RF", the Prime Minister said. Thanks to the activities within the framework of «Eurasia» project, Kazakhstan will be able to double the hydrocarbon resource potential and enter the top ten countries in terms of reserves of raw materials, said Minister of Oil and Gas of Kazakhstan Uzakbai Karabalin.
9 Octoberwithin the framework of the round-table conference dedicated to scientific and technological development of the extractive sector of Kazakhstan's oil and gas industry held during the VIII Eurasian Forum Kazenergy,
took place the signing of the memorandum of understanding on exploring the possibilities of cooperation in the field of geological and physical characteristics of the deposits within the framework of implementation of “The road map of scientific and technological development of the mining sector of the oil and gas industry of Kazakhstan" between NC «KazMunayGas» JSC and Shell Kazakhstan Development B.V.
The signed document particularly includes elaboration of one of the 15 top-priority technology tasks set out in the road map, study-related with the study of reservoir fluids properties. Within the framework of the memorandum it is intended to discuss prospects of formation of the material and technical base for geochemical studies based on geochemical laboratory at the research center of the Kazakh Institute of oil and gas in the special economic zone "Innovative technologies park" in Almaty, Kazinform reports.
KashaganThe Kashagan field has reached commercial volumes of oil production, Kazakhstan Today reports. According to the Minister of oil and gas of the RoK Uzakbai Karabalin, he was reported that the volume of oil at the Kashagan field has reached commercial level and amounted to 175 thousand barrels of oil per day. Previously Chairman and Managing Director of the company-operator of the North Caspian project «North Caspian Operating Company» (NCOC) Pierre Offan said the company is expecting to produce 370 thousand barrels of oil per day ai the year 2014 at the Kashagan field.
The French «Vallourec & Mannesmann Tubes» and «KazMunaiGaz» signed a memorandum of understanding, providing for the op»Eni»ng of a pipe-threading factory in Kazakhstan, specialized in the production of high quality fasteners, informed the press service of the COMPANY. «Vallourec & Mannesmann Tubes» is a leading global manufacturer of seamless steel pipes and fasteners for oil and gas pipes and has the intention to establish production in Kazakhstan.
The project will be implemented within the framework of the cooperation program of the Governments of the two States in the area of technology transfer and attraction of industrial investments to Kazakhstan. The Document was signed by Deputy Chairman of the Board for geology and promising projects of KMG Kurmangazy Iskaziyev and member of the Board of Directors, Director of strategic projects of «Vallourec & Mannesmann Tubes» Pierre Frenzel, the company informs.
As reported by the company, on October 9, 2013 at 09:00 a technical failure occurred at the production facilities of island D of the Kashagan field. As a preventive measure, oil production was suspended, but will be resumed as soon as the problem is solved, " according to the information of the company-operator NCOC. As explained the company's press service, oil production has been suspended until the cause of the gas leak is established.
The head of Statehas signed the Law of the RoK “On ratification of agreement between the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Government of the People's Republic of China on some issues of cooperation in the development and operation of the Kazakhstan-China oil pipeline. The text of the law published in the official press. As the Minister of Oil and Gas Uzakbai Karabalin reported earlier, the aim of the agreement is to increase the capacity of Kazakhstan-China oil pipeline, as well as ensuring stability of supply of Kazakh oil to China by creating an attractive environment for local shippers.
Tengizchevroil LLPthat is developing oil and gas field Tengiz (Atyrau region), resumes oil shipping through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline, interrupted several years ago. This was reported by the National Maritime Shipping Company «Kazmortransflot» JSC (KMTF). The company, in particular, informed that the TCO has nominated the tanker “TC Aktau”, belonging to KMTF, to transport Tengiz oil en route “Aktau sea port – Baku sea port, from which the oil would be shipped to the BTC pipeline.
As reported by KMTF, the shipment volumes of TCO through the Aktau sea port may increase up to 400 thousand tons per month with the resumption of deliveries of the Tengiz oil through BTC. As is known, TCO now transports its crude oil by different routes, including the “Tengiz-Novorossiysk” pipeline, the Caspian pipeline Consortium (CPC), the railroad to Odessa, Taman and Aktau, further to Batumi and Kulevi.
The resumption of TCO oil supplies to BTC, as noted by KMTF, will significantly increase the volume of oil transportation by «Kazmortransflot» tankers and oil transfer through Aktau seaport. The transfer of the planned volume will mainly involve «KazTransOil» JSC oil terminal in Aktau sea port. The company supplied its oil to BTC for a short period of time and broke them in 2008, due to the fact that was not able to agree on the terms of shipment.
Magzum Mirzagaliev was appointed as the Vice-Minister of Oil and Gas of the Republic of Kazakhstan. He succeeded Berik Tolumbaev who resigned in this post. The new Vice-Minister was born on November 7, 1978 in Almaty. In 1999, he graduated from the Turan University, and in 2003 – from the Diplomatic Academy. He worked as the leading wood expert of Akmolinskiy regional directorate division in the Woods, manager of «MI Drilling Fluids International»Aktau branch , Director-General of «T»Eni»zService» LLP NC «KazMunayGas» JSC, Managing Director of KMG. 2012-2013: Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors on innovative development and service projects of NC «KazMunayGas» JSC.
Four oil and gas onshore blocks are put out to tender in Kazakhstan. This was announced by Minister of Oil and Gas U. Karabalin at the Kazakh-Canadian Business Forum in Calgary (Canada), Trend informs. Karabalin noted that "next year the number will be doubled", adding that not only domestic, but also foreign companies may bid for the tenders for the development of new oil and gas blocks. The main condition of participation in projects on the territory of Kazakhstan, announced by the Kazakh Minister, referring to the words of the President of the Republic, is that investors "have to introduce new technologies". The Minister did not mention any other details. Since 2008 there was moratorium on issuance of licenses for subsurface management in Kazakhstan. The ban was linked to the need of new tax legislation development and filmed in January 2013. The cancellation only affected land areas.