Kazakhstan Will Buy BP's Stake in CPC

AFX News Limited reported that BP's joint venture with Kazakh state oil and gas company KazMunaiGas, Kazakhstan Pipeline Ventures, has a 1.75 percent stake, while its joint venture with Russia's LUKOIL , LUKArco, holds a 12.5 percent stake in CPC.

"We have agreed to buy BP's stake in Kazakhstan Pipeline Ventures," KazMunaiGas Chief Executive Kairgeldy Kabyldin told reporters. "It is 49.9 percent for $250 million and the deal is due to be signed today."

Kabyldin said KazMunaiGas was not interested in LUKArco's CPC stake since it was reserved for Russian oil shipment. But LUKArco's other asset -- a stake in Tengizchevroil, Kazakhstan's largest oil producer, -- was interesting, he said.

"We are, of course, interested in the upstream asset so we are in talks with LUKOIL about splitting those assets and evaluating them separately," Kabyldin said.

Kazakhstan is also in talks with Russia, which last month bought Oman's 7 percent stake in CPC and said it could resell 3 percent.

"It will depend on whether we have enough funds," Kabyldin said when asked if that deal would go through.

Apart from Chevron, which holds 15 percent in CPC, BP and LUKOIL, the group's private shareholders include Royal Dutch Shell, ExxonMobil, Italy's Eni and Russia's largest oil producer, Rosneft.

State shareholders Russia and Kazakhstan own 31 percent and 19 percent respectively.

CPC has been shipping oil, mostly from Kazakhstan, since 2001. It pumps up to 750,000 barrels per day to Russia for re-export to the Mediterranean.

Author: Ksenia Kochneva