By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Feb. 24 – Kazakhstan’s Kazmunaigaz and China National Petroleum Corp. have formed a 50-50 joint venture to develop Urikhtau field in northwestern Kazakhstan and eventually ship natural gas to China via pipeline, according to press reports.
Urikhtau field is a giant gas-condensate field with oil rims on the northeast flank of the North Caspian basin 100 miles southeast of Aktobe. It was discovered in 1983.
Soviet-era estimates of recoverable volumes were 1.4 tcf of gas, 85 million bbl of condensate, 47 million bbl of oil, and 84 bcf of associated gas. These may be conservative, however, considering the field’s sparsely drilled status by Soviet break-up.
Bracketing Urikhtau field area Zhanazhol and Kenkiyak fields, also operated by CNPC. Reservoirs at the three fields are Carboniferous in age.
Photo from SABIC Limburg BV.
US Department of the Interior.
