By Ed Crooks In London and Isabel Gorst in Moscow
Published: January 13 2008 23:40 | Last updated: January 13 2008 23:40
Kazakhstan agreed a deal with an Eni-led consortium on Sunday night to develop the Kashagan oilfield.
The consortium – which includes ExxonMobil of the US, Royal Dutch Shell and Total of France – agreed to pay Kazakhstan $2.5bn-$4.5bn in compensation for the project’s late start.
It will also sell shares to KazMunaigas , so the Kazakhstan national oil company’s stake can be doubled to 16.8 per cent, equalling the holdings of the largest western members of the consortium. KMG will take a bigger role in running the project.