Kazakhstan to hold majority stake in all new oil, gas pipelines
ASTANA. June 15. KAZINFORM Kazakhstan, the second-biggest oil producer in the former Soviet Union, will hold majority stakes in new, large oil and natural-gas pipelines, according to a law adopted by parliament.
"The government must have no less than 51 percent in any new pipelines," Oil and Gas Minister Sauat Mynbayev told reporters today in the capital, Astana. The legislation must be signed by the president before coming into force.
Resource-rich nations are seeking more control over their energy wealth as international companies flock to tap their oil and gas fields. The Kazakh law may affect the $39 billion Kashagan project being developed by Eni SpA (ENI), Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) and Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) because the partners plan a pipe to link a treatment plant in Atyrau with Kuryk port, Mynbayev said.
Russia is the biggest oil producer in the former Soviet Union, Kazinform has learnt from Bloomberg.