Energy-rich Kazakhstan plans to auction exploration rights to eight or nine oil and gas fields in the Central Asian nation this year, a senior official said, according to RIA Novosti.

“Last year, after a certain period of moratorium, we announced tenders for three geological exploration blocks. This year we plan to announce a tender for another 8-9 blocks,” Oil and Gas Minister Uzakbai Karabalin said.

Karabalin said the exploration work would help to further increase Kazakhstan’s resource base.

Oil production in Kazakhstan reached 1.73 million barrels per day in 2012, according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2012. Kazakhstan produced 19.7 billion cubic meters of natural gas over the same period, according to BP figures.