ASTANA – The Kazakh Energy Ministry has established a special commission to investigate a technological disruption that occurred on Jan. 18 at the Tengiz oil field, with Deputy Energy Minister Kaiyrkhan Tutkyshbayev on site to monitor the situation and coordinate with the operator.
Kazakh Deputy Energy Minister Kaiyrkhan Tutkyshbayev is on site at the Tengiz field to monitor the situation. Photo credit: Energy Ministry.
The commission includes representatives of the territorial department of the State Energy Supervision and Control Committee, the Energy Department of the Atyrau Region Akimat, the KEGOC system operator, and Tengizchevroil, the ministry’s press service reported on Jan. 22.
According to the ministry, the operator (TCO) initiated the temporary suspension of production in accordance with safety protocols to protect personnel and equipment.
“The commission is currently conducting a detailed technical analysis of the causes of the incident. All official findings and comments regarding the causes and consequences of the incident will be announced solely following the commission’s work,” the ministry said in a statement, noting that the situation remains under its control.
Operations at the Tengiz and Korolevskoye fields, operated by Tengizchevroil (TCO), were halted on Jan. 19 after a fire broke out at two turbine transformers at the GTES-4 power station, according to KazMunayGas. The incident disrupted the power supply, prompting a precautionary shutdown of production.
