Samruk-Kazyna Inks Memorandum with Eni SPA over Kazakhstan Projects
Posted on 01/19/2024
Eni S.p.A. made a deal with KazMunayGas (KMG). On January 18, 2024, Eni Chief Executive Officer Claudio Descalzi and Chairman of the Board of KazMunayGas, Magzum Mirzagaliyev, signed in Rome today a Joint Confirmation agreement on an innovative 250 MW Hybrid Renewables-Gas Project in Zhanaozen City, Mangystau Region, in Kazakhstan. The signature took place during the official visit of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, to Italy.
Eni and KMG confirmed their readiness to proceed to the project’s implementation phase, which will supply KMG facilities in the area with low-carbon, stable electricity produced from solar and wind, and will be balanced with additional capacity from a gas power plant. The project leverages Eni’s international industrial expertise and pioneers the hybrid combination of state-of-the-art renewable power plants, developed by Eni’s subsidiary Plenitude in cooperation with KMG, and gas power plants for balancing capacity.
Eni also signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with Sovereign Wealth Fund Samruk-Kazyna (SK) on additional energy transition projects, including the potential replication of the hybrid renewables model in other regions of Kazakhstan, the assessment of mineral initiatives and the development of other carbon emission reduction technologies.
Furthermore, Eni signed another strategic Cooperation Agreement with the national gas company of Kazakhstan, QazaqGaz (SK’s portfolio company), focused on the exchange of experience among scientific, technical and research centers to develop technological innovations and human capital, with the aim of reducing carbon emissions in gas industry operations.
Eni has been present in Kazakhstan since 1992, where it is a joint operator of the Karachaganak field and an equity partner in various projects in the Northern Caspian Sea, including the Kashagan offshore field. Eni is also a joint operator, with KMG, in the exploration block Abay. Eni operates in Kazakhstan’s renewables sector through Arm Wind, a Plenitude subsidiary, with an overall installed capacity of 150 MW.
On January 16, 2024, Eni, Royal Dutch Shell plc, Exxon Mobil Corporation, and TotalEnergies SE (formerly Total SA), prepared a draft settlement that would stop the Kazakhstan government pursuing the environmental penalty and include a pledge from the companies for additional investment in social projects. There is an over a potential US$ 5 billion environmental fine when it comes to the mega giant Kashagan field.