"The compensation will be received in two tranches," Kazakh finance minister Erbolat Dosayev reported on Tuesday at a press conference in Astana.
"We will receive $100 million in late March and, I think $50 million before April 10, 2004," he pointed out.
On February 25, 2004 Kazakhstan signed an agreement with the consortium of foreign oil companies on the postponement of the time-limits for the commercial oil extraction inn the Kashagan deposit approximately till 2007-2008. In accordance with the approved plan, the volume of oil production in the Kashagan deposit will amount to 21 million tons by 2010, in 2013 it will be 42 million tons and in 2015 it is expected to reach 56 million tons.
In compliance with the 1997 agreement the commercial production of oil in the Kashagan deposit was to begin in 2005, but the AjipKCO consortium, which is an operator on this deposit, could not fulfil this condition.
Kashagan is a major world's deposit developed over the last 30 years and having geological oil reserves estimated at 4.8 billion tons. The AjipKCO consortium incorporates the following companies: Ajip Caspian Sea BV, British Gas, ExxonMobil, Shell Kazakhstan Developoment BV, Total, ConocoPhillips and Inpex.
