UPDATE 2-Kazakhstan imposes oil export duty from May

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By Raushan Nurshayeva

ASTANA, April 8 (Reuters) - Kazakhstan, Central Asia's top oil producer, will impose a crude export duty of $109.91 per tonne from May, a move likely to alarm potential newcomers to its energy business.

The measure, signed by Prime Minister Karim Masimov at a government meeting on Tuesday, is aimed at stabilising domestic supplies, taming inflation and raising budget revenues.

Officials have reassured Western companies operating in the Central Asian state that the duty is unlikely to affect their existing contracts, but new investors will be liable.

Industry Minister Vladimir Shkolnik, speaking after the signing, said the final list of exempted producers had yet to be drawn up.

"It will not affect contracts with a stable customs regime," he said. "The list of such contracts is being worked out."

The duty, Kazakhstan's first such measure since it gained independence in 1991, is due to come into effect 30 days after its publication in state media, most likely later this week.

"The crude export duty is aimed not only at achieving fiscal goals, but also at stabilising domestic oil products prices that have formed main inflationary pressures," Shkolnik said. Kazakhstan had previously said it wanted the duty from 2009.