Kazakhstan suspends Kashagan oilfield

ASTANA (Reuters) – Kazakhstan suspended work at the huge Kashagan oilfield for at least three months on Monday, raising the stakes in the long-delayed project developed by a consortium of Western oil majors.

The project’s start-up delays and cost overruns have long irked Kazakhstan. It has threatened to revoke a permit held by an Eni-led group to exploit the Caspian Sea site, the world’s biggest oil find in decades, over ecological concerns.


The dispute is reminiscent of Russia’s row with Royal Dutch Shell, which ended with the multinational oil firm losing control of the giant Sakhalin-2 oil project to Russia’s Gazprom.

Ecology Minister Nurlan Iskakov said on Monday the suspension was due to environmental violations.

“The permit for 2007 has been suspended. That is, we are suspending work for three months on our part,” Iskakov told reporters.

Reuters