Promising New Oil Discovery Announced at Kashagan

Promising hydrocarbons have been discovered in the supersalt structure of Fatima, Orda.kz reports.

Kashagan operator NCOC announced this at the ATYRAUGEO-2026 geological conference. During drilling at the supersalt structure of Fatima, hydrocarbons were found. Oil and gas expert Nurlan Zhumagulov wrote on his Telegram channel that the most promising supersalt structure at Kashagan was identified as Prospect X.

Earlier, it became known that construction had begun in the Atyrau region on a liquefied petroleum gas fractionation plant for Kashagan. The project is being carried out by NCOC contractors under the supervision of QazaqGaz. The plant is expected to ensure stable gas supplies to the domestic market and reduce fuel shortages.

At the same time, relations between Kashagan shareholders and the state remain tense. In 2023, the government took back the Kairan and Aktota fields from the consortium because investors never began developing them. The shareholders may challenge that decision in court.

In addition, NCOC is already involved in a large-scale legal dispute. The state has filed claims against Kashagan investors for 2.3 trillion tenge over alleged environmental violations and for another $155 billion over the terms of the production-sharing agreement, which allegedly allowed investors to retain up to 98% of profits.

Original author: Ruslan Loginov

Read also:

• Kazakhstan Moves To Simplify Oil Exploration Rules
• Kazakhstan’s National Fund Receives Record Low Oil Revenue
• The War in Iran Opens a Window of Opportunity for Kazakhstan’s Oil Sector, Analysts Say