India, Kazakhstan sign seven pacts

April 16th, 2011 - 4:26 pm ICT by IANS  

Manmohan Singh Astana, April 16 (IANS) India and Kazakhstan Saturday signed seven pacts, including a civil nuclear agreement and one between state oil companies that gives an Indian firm 25 percent stake in the Satpayev oil block in the Caspian Sea.

The pacts were signed during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s two-day trip to the oil and mineral-rich Central Asian country that began Friday.

India’s ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL) and Kazakh national company Kazmunaigas would be jointly exploring oil in the Satpayev exploration block, located in the Kazakhstan sector of the Caspian sea. It covers an area of nearly 1,500 sq km.

The block has two prospective structures with 256 million tonnes of hydrocarbon resources.

“Now on signing the agreement, the Kazmunaigas will assign 25 percent participating interest in the block to OVL as a strategic foreign partner in the project,” an official said.

Other agreements signed by the two countries are:

* Inter-governmental pact on peaceful uses of atomic energy

* Joint action plan for furthering strategic ties

* Cyber security cooperation

* Mutual legal assistance treaty

* Cooperation in agricultural fields

* Healthcare, medical services and pharmacy proposing establishment of cooperation between research and medical institutes.

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