Eni, KazMunayGas to launch new shipyard in Kazakhstan

The plan was unveiled at a recent foreign investors event attended by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

Eni and KazMunaiGas have signed an agreement to explore the Isatai oil and gas field in Kazakhstan, the president’s office said in a statement. Under the deal, the two companies will set up a new facility to perform shipbuilding and shiprepairing contracts. The shipyard is designed to build tankers.

“Italy is a strategic partner of Kazakhstan in Europe. This country accounts for three per cent of Kazakhstan’s total foreign trade turnover,” Nazarbayev was quoted in the statement. “Besides, Italy is the largest consumer of Kazakhstan’s oil.”

The amount of the planned investment was not disclosed by the two companies.

State-owned KazMunayGas has a subsidiary, KazMorTransFlot, which operates a fleet of oil tankers. The firm has six tankers with a capacity ranging between 12,000dwt and 13,000dwt, and also charters Aframax-type vessels, according to data released by KazMunayGas. The firm has shipping activities on the Caspian and Black Seas.