Turkmenistan to draw over $14 bln of investment in petroleum sector.

16/10 Tass 441

ASHGABAT, October 16 (Itar-Tass) -- Turkmenistan plans to draw big
investments in the oil and gas sector, the largest of which (more than 14
billion U.S. dollars) will be spent for the development of the South
Iolotan-Osman gas deposit, the East-West gas trunk line and the upgrade of
the Seidinsky refinery, Deputy Prime Minister on Fuel and Energy Baimyrat
Khodzhamukhammedov said on Friday during an international investment
forum, which is under way in Turkmenistan for the first time ever.

Taking part in the forum are representatives of about 600 companies
from 50 countries.
The giant gas deposit South Iolotan-Osman confirms Turkmenistan's
status as one of the world biggest energy country, the deputy prime
minister said.
According to an independent audit, the deposit's reserves are
estimated at from four trillion to 14 trillion cubic metres, which
probably makes this field the world's fourth one, he said.
"The bloc of the South Iolotan-Osman deposits will be commissioned by
2012. Its annual capacity will make up 100 billion cubic metres,"
Khodzhamukhammedov said.
"The large Yashlar deposit will be commissioned in 2015," he said,
adding, that the deposit will produce 40 billion cubic metres of gas a
year.
"Turkmenistan explored more than 1,000 inshore and offshore promising
hydrocarbon fields. In addition, more than 150 deposits were discovered,
and only 50 of them are being developed," the deputy prime minister said.
"International and Turkmen experts estimate the country's resources of
hydrocarbons at 20.8 billion tonnes of oil and 24.3 trillion cubic metres
of natural gas," Khodzhamukhammedov said.
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