Economy weighing on Kazakh ventures

ASTANA, Kazakhstan, Feb. 23 (UPI) -- The global recession has prompted two international energy companies to request delays affecting a joint venture between Russia and Kazakhstan, officials said.

Russian energy giant Gazprom signed a deal in 2007 with Kazakhstan to create a joint venture to process gas in Russia from the nearby Karachaganak field.

"BG (British Gas Group) and AGIP (now Italy's ENI S.p.A.) -- the partner companies in the Karachaganak project -- have requested a delay in the third phase due to the current crisis," said Kazakh Energy Minister Sauat Mynbayev.

The minister told lawmakers in the capital, Astana, that the country may weigh additional development at the field, located in northwest Kazakhstan, and its joint venture with Gazprom, RIA Novosti reports.

Besides BG and ENI, Russian oil company LUKoil and U.S.-based Chevron are shareholders in the Karachaganak field, which boasts more than 47 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves.

The Gazprom venture would process around 560 billion cubic feet of gas per year.