Led by Alexey Miller, the Company’s Management Committee Chairman, Gazprom’s delegation has completed its working visit to Kazakhstan.

In the course of the meetings with Nursultan Nazarbaev and Danial Akhmetov, Kazakhstan’s President and Prime Minister, respectively, the parties addressed the prospects for cooperation between Russia and Kazakhstan in the energy sector, discussing, in particular, deeper interaction with Kazakh oil & gas companies, natural gas supplies and the Central Asia – Centre (CAC) gas transmission network debottlenecking.

The parties also dealt with issues surrounding the establishment of a joint venture to upgrade the Orenburg Gas Processing Plant and preparation of a long-term contract for gas deliveries from the Karachaganak field to the Orenburg GPP. Special emphasis was placed on a joint marketing policy based on the integrated export channel provided by the Russian-Kazakh joint venture KazRosGaz.

Alexey Miller also met with Uzakbai Karabalin, KazMunayGas’ President. The parties pointed to the successful interaction within the accords achieved in the intergovernmental agreements between Russia and Kazakhstan.

Additionally, Gazprom and Intergas Central Asia (a KazMunayGas transmission subsidiary) inked a package of mid-term contracts for the transmission of Russian and Central Asian natural gas via Kazakhstan over 2006 to 2010 with the use of the CAC and Bukhara – Ural transportation systems running via the Republic. The contracts were signed under the ‘available capacity’ principles.

Reference:

The explored natural gas reserves of the Republic of Kazakhstan average 2 tcm, with the forecast natural gas resources (the Caspian Sea offshore inclusive) valued at 8.3 tcm.

Over the past years, domestic gas production and consumption in the Republic of Kazakhstan have annually averaged 11-12 and 5 bcm, respectively. Gas extraction is planned to grow to 14 and 40 bcm in 2005 and 2020, respectively, to be succeeded by potential increase in gas exports and crucial development of the Kashagan, Karachaganak and Tengiz fields.

Central Asian gas is going to European Russia, the Ukraine and the Transcaucasus via the Kazakh gas main network totaling over 9 thou km, having a more than 50 bcm in combined transit capacity, including the 42 bcm Central Asia –Center gas pipeline.

The Russian-Kazakh cooperation in the gas business is being regulated by the following Inter-Governmental Agreements on: Cooperation and Development of Fuel and Energy Complexes, dated 25 December 1993 (annual Protocols apply); Technical & Economic Cooperation and Integration in the Oil and Gas Industries, dated 25 February 1997; Cooperation in the Gas Industry, dated 28 November 2001.

In June 2002, Gazprom and the National KazMunayGas Company founded the 50/50 Kazakhstan-based KazRosGaz joint venture dealing with natural gas procurement, marketing and processing at Russian plants as well as with other activities.

In October 2002, Gazprom, Orenburggazprom and the Karachaganak Integrated Company entered into a contract stipulating deliveries of gas originating from the Karachaganak field to the Orenburg Gas Processing Plant.