Kazakhstan's TCO says operations unaffected by fresh virus case
ALMATY, April 20 (Reuters) - Kazakhstan's biggest oil producer, Tengizchevroil (TCO), said on Monday its production operations "continue as normal" after a fresh case of the novel coronavirus was confirmed among the workers of one of its partner companies.
TCO said last week it was temporarily reducing work on its $45 billion expansion project and suspending construction activities related to its base business to protect employees after the first coronavirus cases were confirmed among workers of its contractors.
On Sunday, TCO said in a statement, another person employed by its partner company tested positive, prompting further tests among their contacts and the disinfection of impacted facilities.
According to the government of the Atyrau province where TCO operates, some 500 people employed by TCO's contractors refused to go to work on Monday for fear of getting infected after the fresh case was confirmed.
However, the government said, the workers then agreed to return to work by Wednesday after the authorities promised to test them all for the disease.
TCO, owned by Chevron, ExxonMobil, Russia's LUKOIL and Kazakhstan's KazMunayGaz, operates the giant Tengiz field in western Kazakhstan and accounts for a third of the country's total crude output.
The Central Asian nation has confirmed 1,757 coronavirus cases and reported 17 deaths. The Kazakh government has locked down all provinces and major cities until the end of April. (Reporting by Olzhas Auyezov; editing by Barbara Lewis)
