OREANDA-NEWS. August 9, 2007. In Astana, within the framework of the official visit to the RoK of President of the Azerbaijani Republic I.G. Aliyev, bilateral documents were signed between JSC NC “KazMunayGas” and the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The documents in question are the Agreement on Strategic Cooperation in the Oil & Gas Industry and the Memorandum on Joint Implementation of the Trans-Caspian Project.

The signed agreement declares mutual intentions of the parties to continue the mutually beneficial cooperation in the oil & gas industry, and incorporates relevant arrangements on transportation and transit of the Kazakhstan oil, oil refinement and petrochemistry, and joint use of the SOCAR’s oil & gas infrastructure.

The Memorandum is a step forward in implementation of the Trans-Caspian Project, the basic terms of which were set out in the Agreement on Assistance and Support of Oil Transportation from the Republic of Kazakhstan across the Caspian Sea and the Territory of the Azerbaijani Republic to International Markets through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan System signed in June, 2006 by President of the Republic of Kazakhstan N. Nazarbayev and President of the Azerbaijani Republic I. Aliyev.

In accordance with the executed Memorandum, the parties intend to jointly implement the Trans-Caspian Project, which will be comprised of oil-discharge terminals on the Kazakhstan coast of the Caspian Sea, tankers and vessels, oil-loading terminals on the Azerbaijan coast of the Caspian Sea, and joining facilities up to the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan system.

The Trans-Caspian System is a part of the projected Kazakhstan-Caspian Transportation System (KCTS). At the initial stage, the KCTS is planned to provide transportation of 500 thousand bbl./d. (23 MMty) with further increase to 750-1200 thousand bbl./d. (35-56 MMty).