Kazakhstan aims to ship half the Caspian Sea’s cargoes by 2013

Almaty: Kazakhstan aims to handle half of the Caspian Sea's commodity cargoes by 2013 after expanding its fleet of oil tankers with the help of private investors, the country's transport minister said. The larger fleet will allow Central Asia's top oil producer to ship 57 percent more crude via the Caspian port of Aktau by 2014, in preparation for the launch of major new projects, Minister of Transport and Communications Abelgazi Kusainov said.

"Today, we ship 30 percent of all cargoes in the Caspian. We are already acquiring large tankers and by 2013 intend to have a 50 percent share of all cargoes, primarily oil and grain," Kusainov told Reuters in an interview.

Kazakhstan is one of five countries with a coastline on the Caspian Sea. The others are Azerbaijan, Iran, Russia and Turkmenistan.

Kazakhstan, which has attracted over $100 billion in foreign investment since gaining independence two decades ago, is home to the Kashagan oilfield, the world's largest oil find in four decades which is due to start output in the next few years.

Kashagan, a project run by several international energy majors, will eventually be able to ship 56 million tonnes of crude per year. In its first phase, annual shipments of 7.5 million tonnes will move by tanker and rail by 2013.

The existing Tengizchevroil venture, run by U.S. oil major Chevron, also is expected to contribute to a rise in crude production when it completes an expansion to raise output by between 60 percent and 90 percent by 2016. 
(Source:www.seatradeasia-online.com)