Maxim Telemtayev, Zangar Nogaibay, Marat Ibragimov and Chingiz Kraibekov from White & Case office in Nur-Sultan took part in the development of the recently-published article-by-article commentary to the new Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On Subsoil and Subsoil Use".
The Commentary accumulates the authors' practical knowledge of legal and contractual regulation of subsoil use relations. All authors who previously participated in drafting of the Subsoil Code took part in the development of the Commentary. The Commentary is the first one in Kazakhstan related to the new Subsoil Code and the first one prepared according to the methodology adopted in western countries.
The basis for the Commentary, that was prepared under the guidance of the largest sectoral oil and gas association, Kazenergy, was provided by the Western, specifically, German experience of commenting the legislation by practicing lawyers.
Today, the published Commentary is already highly sought after by practitioners in state bodies – regulators, judicial bodies and companies – subsoil users, including international companies operating in the oil and gas sector on large projects in Kazakhstan. It represents not only the substance of regulations, but also their internal correlation, rationale and history of development of certain regulatory decisions.
Our lawyers are the authors of commentaries to key articles of the Subsoil Code, such as articles on transitional provisions of the Code (relevant to current contracts), regulation of conclusion, amendment and termination of subsoil use contracts on hydrocarbons and their legal nature, liability under contracts and their early termination, principles of subsoil use, concept of subsoil and its resources, issues of mineral ownership, regulation of project documents, transfer of shares and interests related to subsoil rights and the state's priority right to redeem alienated subsoil use rights or shares (interests) in strategic projects, dispute resolution, subsoil user reporting, geological study of subsoil, etc.
The Commentary is distributed free of charge to a wide range of lawyers in state bodies, courts and subsoil users. The electronic version of the Commentary will soon be posted on a publicly-available Internet database.
In view of the foregoing, the Commentary will serve as a good acknowledgment of experience of White & Case's team in the legal regulation of subsoil use issues.
The text of the Commentary (in Russian) can be sent to you upon request (as a PDF file).
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This article is prepared for the general information of interested persons. It is not, and does not attempt to be, comprehensive in nature. Due to the general nature of its content, it should not be regarded as legal advice.
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