Operator restarts oil production at Kazakhstan's Kashagan field

NUR-SULTAN. Aug 10 (Interfax) - North Caspian Operating Company (NCOC) has re-started production at the Kashagan field in the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea.

"NCOC, the Operator of the North Caspian Project, informs that as part of the restart of production operations on the night from 9th to 10th of August, there will be limited flaring at the offshore and onshore production facilities within the relevant permits," the company said in a statement.

"This intermittent activity is standard for the restart of such complex production operations as Kashagan's and will be temporary," according to the statement.

Kashagan operations were suspended as a result of a gas leak on the site on August 3.

The Caspian Pipeline Consortium earlier significantly reduced oil shipments through the Tengiz-Novorossiysk pipeline system due to repairs at the Tengiz field and suspension of production at the Kashagan field.

Kashagan is Kazakhstan's first offshore oil and gas field in the Caspian Sea. It is the largest international investment project in the country. The Kashagan field's recoverable resources are estimated at 9-13 billion barrels of crude. Commercial operations at Kashagan began on November 1, 2016.

NCOC, the operator of the Kashagan project, is owned by KMG Kashagan B.V. with 16.877%, Shell Kazakhstan Development B.V., Total EP Kazakhstan, Agip Caspian Sea B.V., and ExxonMobil Kazakhstan Inc. each with 16.807%; CNPC Kazakhstan B.V. with 8.333% and Inpex North Caspian Sea Ltd. with 7.563%.