ASTANA, May 28. /TASS/. Russia and Kazakhstan are discussing the terms of expanding infrastructure for hydrocarbon supplies, Russian Energy Minister Sergey Tsivilyov said, adding that these supplies are effective, and signing contracts is possible after reaching agreements between the companies.
"This infrastructure has already proven its effectiveness. It runs along the most efficient transport and logistics corridors, and there is extensive experience in operating this infrastructure. We believe it is our joint decision that this infrastructure should continue to develop. Therefore, our companies are currently discussing all the conditions for further expansion and effective maintenance of this infrastructure. This is in the interests of all our countries, and this is no longer a difficult issue for anyone," he told reporters.
The companies are currently discussing the terms of further expansion and effective maintenance of this infrastructure, the minister added. When asked when a specific agreement might be signed, he said: "The companies will work on it once all pricing and investment issues are finalized. It’s a mutual process because this will have to be done in both Russia and Kazakhstan."
Earlier, Tsivilyov and Kazakhstan’s Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov signed an intergovernmental agreement to expand cooperation in the oil sector. The ceremony followed talks between the presidents of Russia and Kazakhstan. Akkenzhenov told reporters that Russia and Kazakhstan had drafted an agreement that would increase Russian oil transit to China via Kazakhstan by 2.5 mln tons. Additional calculations and a feasibility study for the project are still pending, he said, adding that increasing oil supplies along this route requires the construction of additional pumping stations and expansion of the pipeline.