Eni to share Kashagan lead role in new deal-source

MOSCOW, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Italy's Eni (ENI.MI) will lose its role as sole operator of the giant Kashagan oil field, sharing it instead with other majors in the group under a new deal reached with Kazakhstan, a source said on Monday.

"A new model of operatorship has been approved so the consortium can use the experience of other members of the group -- Shell, Total and Exxon," said the source, who is close to talks on the project's future.

He said it was not yet clear how the four majors will split the roles.

State-owned KazMunaiGas agreed on Sunday with the consortium to nearly double its stake in Kashagan to 16.51 percent, equalling that of the biggest investors in the project.

The source said KazMunaiGas will pay $1.78 billion to increase its stake in the project. (Reporting by Dmitry Zhdannikov; editing by Douglas Busvine)