The state energy firms of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan agreed on Friday to begin shipments of Kazakh oil across the Caspian Sea from 2013, Azerbaijani state energy company SOCAR said in a statement.

The deal follows up on a 2006 agreement for Kazakhstan to participate in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, a Western-backed pipeline that bypasses Russia to deliver oil from Azerbaijan, through Georgia, to Turkey.

The project will see Kazakh state energy company Kazmunaigas ship oil in tankers across the Caspian for re-export, the statement said.

The system`s initial shipment capacity will stand at 500,000 barrels per day and will eventually rise to 750,000-1,200,000 barrels, the statement said.

The announcement of a firm date for shipments came after Kazakhstan last month ended a long-running dispute with foreign investors over its vast Kashagan oil field, one of the world`s largest untapped deposits.

The Kazakh government and seven energy firms developing the project signed a deal doubling Kazmunaigas` stake at the expense of six foreign partners.

East European leaders, joined by Turkish President Abdullah Gul, met in the Azerbaijani capital Baku Friday for a summit aimed at promoting energy routes to Europe outside Russia`s influence.

Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan are both former Soviet republics rich in oil and gas.