Azernews.Az

Production is planned to be launched at the Rakushechnoe-sea structure of block 'N' in the Kazakh part of the Caspian Sea in 2018-2019, Kazakhstan's national oil and gas company KazMunaiGas (KMG) said.

"The operator has drilled two exploration wells on structures Rakushechnoe-sea and South Nursultan," the company said. "Production is expected to be launched on the Rakushechnoe-sea structure in 2018-2019."

According to the report, KMG plans to continue exploration operations to evaluate hydrocarbons in the 'N' section.

"Besides the above-mentioned structures, there are several promising areas for further exploration: Alfarabi, Samal, Sary-Arka, East Nursultan and North Nursultan," the report says.

On January 25, KazMunaiGas completed a deal acquiring a 24.5 per cent share of ConocoPhilips in project 'N'. As a result, KMG became the owner of 75.5 per cent of the rights of subsoil use in the project.

The increase of KazMunaiGas's share in the N project demonstrates systematic action to strengthen the role of the company in offshore exploration projects in the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea.

KazMunaiGas is the Kazakh national operator for hydrocarbon exploration, production, processing and transportation. The state owns all the company's shares.

The 'N' block is located in the Caspian Sea, 30 kilometres south-southwest of the city of Aktau. The area is about 8100 square kilometres. The first exploration well (R-1) was drilled there at the Rakushechnoye-Sea structure after which the first confirmation of the presence of hydrocarbon resources was obtained.