International Oil and Gas Forum in Atyrau demonstrates the latest trends in science and technology

In April, Atyrau hosted the main oil and gas events in the North-Caspian region - Atyrau Oil & Gas 2015, the 14th North-Caspian regional exhibition and OILTECH Atyrau 2015, the 9th Atyrau Regional Oil & Gas technology conference.

This year's annual Atyrau Oil & Gas 2015 exhibition brought together 85 companies from a range of 14 various countries.

As usual, the exhibition and conference featured leading companies in the industry and regular exhibitors such as NC KazMunayGas JSC, Tengizchevroil, SHELL Kazakhstan Development BV, Caspian Offshore Construction, LUKOIL-Nizhnevolzhskneft, NCOC, and others.

"As an oil country, we need to always be aware of the trends and recent developments in science and technology, seeking to adopt the most effective technology to make our oil and gas industry high-tech. In the current environment of the global energy market, we need to find ways to improve the efficiency of the domestic oil and gas industry at all stages, from exploration to refining", commented Vladimir Shkolnik, Minister of Energy of the Republic of Kazakhstan, in his welcome letter to exhibitors of the oil and gas exhibition and conference.

Exhibitors of Atyrau Oil & Gas 2015 demonstrated their innovations. In the Coatings - Anti-Corrosion Coatings for Pipelines sector, TSZP Kazakhstan used developments from the world's best scientists and Russian engineers for reducing production costs. Adding knowledge of local specifics to the developments, the company presented an innovative solution addressing issues of restoration, consolidation and improvement of the operational, physical and mechanical characteristics of working surfaces in plants, components and mechanisms by using thermal spraying and welding methods.

ASTEL demonstrated a rapid deployment portable satellite communication system and the SkyEdge C client package of satellite Internet and data transmission service.

Turnkey pump stations specifically for Kazakhstan and energy efficient boiler plants from OZNA (Bashkortostan, Russia) were of particular interest to visitors.

The AtyrauNefteMash plant presented new projects launched to expand production capacities and develop new technologies.

For the first time ever, the exhibition was attended by 12 oil producing and oilfield services companies from Udmurtia.

Dmitry Lentsev, Commercial Director of Nefteprom-Service Group, the Udmurt Republic, Russia, said, "Our company is exhibiting for the first time with a delegation from the Republic of Udmurtia and our goal is to enter Kazakhstan's market, it is one of our priorities as it is quite a large market, in fact, it is growing."

Their participation was planned as part of the business mission programme of the Udmurt delegation to expand the business potential of partner countries. The delegation was headed by Mr. Viktor Savelyev, Chairman of the Government of the Republic of Udmurtia.

The Dutch national stand was presented personally by Mr. Hans Driesser, the Ambassador of the Netherlands in Kazakhstan.

For the second year in a row, the Atyrau Oil & Gas exhibition featured sections such as Welding and Welding Equipment, and Coatings - Anti-Corrosion Coatings for Pipelines. KAZWELD the Kazakhstan Welding Association organised the Welding and Welding Equipment section for the first time.

Mr. Rustambek Abdurakhmanov, Executive Director of KAZWELD Kazakhstan Welding Association said, "We try to unite science and welding technology, and an exhibition of this scale provides an opportunity to communicate and share knowledge among scientists, researchers and industry professionals."

Rafil Suleymanov, Chief Welder, Novye Tekhnologii CJSC, Russia commented, "It is our first time exhibiting at Atyrau Oil & Gas 2015 to announce our company in the Kazakhstani oil refining market and oil and gas industry. We provide tank cleaning, in-line inspection, chemical cleaning, welding for existing pipelines, and pressure cutting services, so it was very interesting to be here in Kazakhstan."

The two-day OILTECH Atyrau 2015 conference was aimed at discussing the efficient organisation of innovative geological exploration, applying innovative approaches in creation evaluation, as well as the latest achievements in offshore geology, developing oil refining and chemistry, environmental security and many other issues.

One of the key presentations was given by Mr. Aydar Dosbayev, Deputy Director of the Future Growth Project, Wellhead Pressure Management Project, TCO, who presented the project's key statistics. The FGP will increase oil production by about 12 million tons/year and create 20,000 jobs at the peak of construction. At the same time, the project is opening up opportunities for Kazakhstani suppliers who can present their products and services to the group of experts at the FGP.

It is encouraging that most of presentations were made on aspects of innovation in a given field of the oil and gas industry. One of the topics discussed was the problem of enhanced oil recovery and the efficient organisation of geological exploration. These issues were discussed by speakers from Tengizchevroil, Shell, and LUKOIL-Nizhnevolzhskneft, who presented their visions for geological research and oil exploration.

The drilling and oilfield construction session was also very active in terms of discussions. It should be noted that drilling technology, from exploration to industrial aspects, has always been widely presented at Atyrau Oil & Gas. Since the event's inception, it has occupied a key place in the conference programme.

The conference continued with discussions on Refining and Petrochemicals, Environmental Security, and concluded with the Nuances and Specifics of Doing Business in Kazakhstan master class, which was given by Grata law firm.

Over the years, the oil and gas exhibition and conference in Atyrau has become a well-known and anticipated regional event bringing together leading local and foreign experts in exploration, drilling, pumping, transportation, recycling and other areas.

The events are officially supported by the Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Akimats (mayors) of Atyrau and the Atyrau region, NC KazMunayGas JSC, the Kazakhstani Union of Service Companies Kazservice, and KAZWELD the Kazakhstan Welding Association.

The event is organised by Kazakhstan exhibition company Iteca and its international partner ITE Group.

In 2016, Atyrau Oil & Gas, the 15th North-Caspian regional exhibition and the 10th Atyrau regional Oil & Gas technology conference will be held under a new brand - Global Oil & Gas Atyrau, on April 12-14, 2016. Iteca's rebranding of the events is part of a broader initiative to create a single global brand for ITE Group events worldwide.

More information, photos and videos of the event are available at www.oil-gas.kz