According to Kazakhstan state broadcaster Khabar, “The [Sunkar] rig had been impounded because of unpaid taxes, customs duties and fines worth some US$6 million.”

“Customs officials say that if Parker Drilling takes no real steps to pay off its debts to the (Kazakh) budget, they will be forced to auction off the offshore rig and transfer the proceeds from the sold property to the state coffers,” it added.

Parker Drilling has confirmed the rig has been “temporarily impounded” by the Mangistau Customs Control in the Central Asian country.

In a statement the company said, “Mangistau Customs has taken this action pursuant to its assessment of duties relating to the temporary import status of the Sunkar in Kazakhstan. Parker has filed an objection to this assessment with the court in the Mangistau Oblast at Aktau, which includes documentation supporting Parker’s position that the rig is currently exempt from duties.”

“The rig remains in its stacked location in the Caspian Sea port of Bautino,” added Parker Drilling.

According to the company’s President and CEO, Robert L. Parker Jr, “We are cooperating with the governmental authorities to the fullest extent, and believe that judicial review of the documentation we have provided will result in the resolution of this dispute in our favour.”

“We also believe that an amicable and timely resolution would be in the best interests of all parties involved,” he added.

It is believed the seizure of the rig is part of a power play by the Kazakh government, as reported earlier in EnergyReview.net, to gain a stake in an ENI-led consortium which is developing the offshore Kashagan field. It is also acknowledged the impounding of the Sunkar will affect the consortium’s plans to have first oil by 2008.