News Roundup - February 11, 2008

CACI Analyst: Kazakhstan threatens oil export duty following Kashagan settlement

Two weeks after successful renegotiation of Kazakhstan’s participation in the Kashagan offshore project, the country’s energy minister stated on January 29 that Kazakhstan may impose a duty on nearly half of all exports of crude and oil products beginning in 2009…

Guardian Unlimited: France to step up contacts with oil-rich Kazakhstan

French Prime Minister Francois Fillon sought to step up energy contacts with Kazakhstan on Friday and said he had discussed independence in the energy sphere on a visit to the oil-rich former Soviet republic…

RIA Novosti: French PM invites investment from Kazakhstan

The French prime minister, currently on a visit to Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, has called on Kazakh businessmen to invest in his country’s economy…

Itar-Tass: France, Kazakhstan sign bilateral agreements in Astana

A number of bilateral agreements has been signed during an official visit of French Prime Minister Francois Fillon to Kazakhstan on Friday…

Reuters: Kazakh plant in $1 bln titanium deal with Airbus

A Kazakh company will supply titanium for EADS, the European aerospace group, in a deal estimated at $1 billion, officials said on Friday…

Reuters: Eramet in Kazakh titanium deal to supply Airbus

French metals firm Eramet said on Friday it had concluded an agreement with its partner UKTMP of Kazakhstan to supply titanium to aerospace firm EADS and its Airbus planemaking subsidiary…

New Europe: EU-Kazakhstan diplomatic relationship commemorated

Author: Marat Tazhin, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan bases the philosophy of its foreign policy on creating favourable external conditions for the country’s development, while still taking into account the weight of the geopolitical interests of the largest global and regional players such as the USA, the European Union, Russia and China…

New Europe: Strategic fields on course for nationalisation

Kazakhstan’s Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Karim Masimov discussed at a ministry meeting held in Astana last week a heavier tax load for subsurface users and an audit of fulfilment by them of their contractual obligations…

Kazinform: Kazakhstan to up oil output

Kazakhstan said it will increase its oil output by 3.7 percent during 2008, the Middle East North Africa Financial Network reported…

Reuters: Inpex to cut stake in Kashagan field to 7.56 pct

Inpex Holdings Inc said on Friday it would slightly lower its unit’s stake in Kazakhstan’s Kashagan oil field, but the move would not affect its earnings for the fiscal year ending in March…

Reuters: Kazakh’s TuranAlem says net profit up in 2007

Unconsolidated net profit at TuranAlem, Kazakhstan’s second-largest bank, rose to 48.68 billion tenge ($404.5 million) in 2007, the bank said on Friday…

OilVoice: Victoria Oil & Gas announces appointment of new directors

The Board of Directors of Victoria Oil & Gas Plc, the AIM-quoted oil and gas company, confirms the appointment of four new Directors to the Board, as previously announced…

Eurasia Daily Monitor: Sourcing the Nabucco pipeline to prevail against South Stream

Gas reserves at Azerbaijan’s Shah-Deniz field would amply suffice for the Nabucco pipeline’s first commercial phase, from 2013 onward. However, investors would expect second-phase supplies to be reliably identified by the time construction work starts on the pipeline’s first phase.

UPI: Analysis: Petronas makes Uzbek strides

In the mad Western dash for Central Asian energy resources, investors initially focused on Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. Following the death of Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov in December 2006, Western energy firms fell over themselves courting Turkmenistan’s new president, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov…

TREND: Rompetrol wishes to create energy bridge between Kazakhstan and Europe

The Georgian Black Sea port and Rumanian Constance port may become an energy bridge between Kazakhstan and Europe, Din Patricio, the general director of Rompetrol, stated to journalists during the press-conference in Astana…