Kashagan Production Delayed Again

The consortium developing the giant Kashagan oilfield in Kazakhstan has proposed delaying the start of production to 2012-13, the Kazakh Energy Minister Sauat Mynbayev has announced.

Referring to the western consortium, Mynbayev told Reuters that "they have various scenarios, involving the year 2012-13".

Under the current agreement, the Caspian Sea oilfield is due to start pumping oil at the end of 2011.

The consortium - made up of oil majors including ExxonMobil and Shell - met last week to push forward plans to develop the project following a six-month stand off.

Sources speaking to the news agency last week said the deadline for the proposals (set at 31 May) would be pushed further if details concerning the start of production and the structure of its new managing company were not finalised.

The field, which was discovered in July 2000, is the world's biggest oil discovery in 30 years.

By staff writer