Kazakhstan looks for gas transit options

ASTANA, Kazakhstan, June 29 (UPI) -- Kazakhstan sees a rival to the Baku-Novorossiysk pipeline from Russia to Azerbaijan as a more economically attractive transit option for its gas, officials say.

Kazakhstan current transports its natural gas through connections to the 830-mile Baku-Novorossiysk pipeline.

"From the economic point of view, the most attractive for shippers is the route Baku-Batumi pipeline. In addition, KazMunayGas is the owner of Batumi Oil Terminal, and therefore, Kazakhstan has commercial interests in the loading of the port and development of this route," an anonymous representative of the state-owned KMG told Azerbaijan's Trend news service.

The Kazakh state-owned oil and gas company KMG, meanwhile, stated it has $4 billion in cash for new acquisitions despite concerns over the national banking system.

The State Oil Co. of the Azerbaijan Republic had eyed transports of Kazakh and Turkmen oil through Baku-Novorossiysk, though the KMG official said the economics of the transits played a heavy roll in any decisions.

"And the possibility of transporting Kazakh oil through Baku-Novorossiysk pipeline will depend on the economics of supply for the shippers and the availability of unallocated volumes," he said.