NORTH Caspian Operating Company (NCOC) is contesting a huge fine from Kazakhstan authorities over the results of environmental compliance inspections of its offshore and onshore facilities. NCOC manages Kazakhstan's second-largest oil development, Kashagan, in the Kazakh shallow-water sector of the Caspian Sea. Last month, the Atyrau regional department of the Kazakh Environmental Protection Ministry demanded NCOC pay a 2.3 trillion tenge ($5.1 billion) fine for alleged compliance violations. However, NCOC has asked the regional administrative court in the city of Atyrau to annual the results of the inspections and the fine, according to Kazakh energy industry social networking channel Energy Monitor. NCOC argued that the inspections lost their legal validity when the department made their findings public, because the law says they should not be disclosed until NCOC has exhausted all options of appealing them in court.
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