Total Takes Over Blocks from Kazakh State Company

French energy giant Total has taken 75% of two blocks of Kazakhstan's promising south-western drilling region from state company Nurmunai.

The company said the acquisition has been approved by Kazakh authorities.

The two onshore blocks cover an area of approx. 14,500 sq kms, in a rich area for extraction.  The region, Kashagan, is one of the largest oil fields in the world, with as much as 16 billion barrels of estimated commercial reserves. Its Karachaganak field holds about 2.4 billion barrels of oil and an estimated 15 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of natural gas.

As the new operator of the licenses, Total will collect seismic data before drilling a well in 2013.



'The acquisition of the stake in the Nurmunai Petrogas Concessions is in line with Total ambitious exploration strategy and strengthens the presence of the Group in Kazakhstan where it will deploy its expertise as operator in a region with promising potential,' said Yves-Louis Darricarrère, president of upstream with the company.

The International Energy Agency says oil exports from Kazakhstan should more than double by 2035, agencies added.