CNPC, Uzbekistan tie up to develop Mingbulak oilfield
BEIJING, Oct 20 (Reuters) - China's top oil firm CNPC has agreed to develop an Uzbek oilfield which could produce 40,000 barrels per day together with state oil firm Uzbekneftegaz, CNPC's in-house newspaper China Petroleum Daily said on Monday.
The two companies plan to jointly develop Mingbulak oilfield in the Namangan region of Uzbekistan, based on a contract signed between CNPC, parent of PetroChina (0857.HK)(601857.SS)(PTR.N) and Uzbek's national oil and gas firm last April.
Located in the Fergana oil and gas region, Mingbulak was discovered in 1992 and has proven recoverable crude reserves of 30 million tonnes, equivalent to 219 million barrels.
Upon completion, the field will help Uzbekistan to satisfy its domestic crude needs, the report said.
The report did not give details of the investment involved.
In July this year, Uzbekistan started construction of a new natural gas pipeline, which will link Turkmen, Uzebek and Kazakh natural gas deposits to the Chinese market.
China's appetite for Central Asia's energy faces stiff competition from Russia, which sees the region as part of its post-Soviet sphere of influence and controls the existing pipelines that take gas and oil westwards to Europe.
For a recent story on Russian gas deals with Uzbekistan, please click on [ID:nL2368406] (Reporting by Beijing newsroom, Editing by Anne Marie Roantree)
