Astana, Kazakhstan, Dec. 5
By Daniar Mukhtarov - Trend:
Kazakhstan is not ready now to take advantage of Russia's proposal to transport oil via the Friendship pipeline due to lack of additional volumes, Kayrgeldy Kabyldin, the Chairman of Management Board at Kazakh oil transporting company, KazTransOil, said in an interview with Trend.
The Friendship (Druzhba) pipeline is a main oil pipeline, which runs through the territory of Ukraine.
Kabyldin said it would be of course interesting to use the Friendship pipeline, adding "but we can't accept such a proposal of the Russian side, as we [in Kazakhstan] have no increase in oil production."
"Over two years we have been producing at 80 million metric tons," Kabyldin told Trend, adding "It means there is delivery opportunity via the 'Friendship', as there is the pipeline, but we're not getting more oil."
Recently, the Russian Energy Ministry said Kazakhstan was proposed to consider the possibility of oil transit to Europe via the southern branch of the Friendship main oil pipeline, which runs through Ukraine.
Some sources said the Friendship pipeline delivers 15 million metric tons of oil to Europe, of which no more than 2 million metric tons can be replaced by Kazakhstan's oil.
Kabyldin said Russia redirected large volume of oil supplies from westerly direction towards the Pacific Ocean to the Far East and from there to China.
"That is why they currently have free volumes in the amount of 10 million metric tons in the oil pipelines running towards the Baltic Sea and 10 million metric tons in the direction of Novorossiysk," Kabyldin said. "The Russian side offers us to use the vacant quota, but we [Kazakhstan] are delivering both to the Baltic Sea and Novorossiysk."
He noted that Kazakhstan completely covers its export volumes of oil.
"We fully cover our quotas on the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), via the Atyrau-Samara pipeline and the Kazakhstan-China pipeline," Kabyldin said, "Besides, China requests the extension of the Kazakhstan-China pipeline, and we have expanded it up to 20 million metric tons."
He said Kazakhstan is increasing oil supplies to the domestic market, despite the fact that all export flows have been distributed.
"Last year we supplied China with 12 million metric tons of oil, but this year - only with seven million metric tons, as five million metric tons of oil were redirected to the domestic market," Kabyldin added.
He recalled that last year, Russia supplied its oil to the Shymkent and Pavlodar oil refineries, and starting from this year Kazakhstan has been itself supplying crude to its factories.
He said now Kazakhstan has to redirect a volume of five million metric tons of oil from the Kazakhstan-China pipeline to the Pavlodar and Shymkent oil refineries.
"So that, our deliveries to China decreased this year. Therefore, I repeat, that we can't take advantage of the proposal to supply oil through the Friendship pipeline for a simple reason that we don't have additional volumes of oil," he said.
Kabyldin also noted that next year the transit of Russian oil to China through the Kazakhstan-China pipeline will increase.
"The Russian side has already made a statement for the next year's transit via our territory to China. And we give them a quota of 10 million metric tons. A corresponding agreement has been already signed," Kabyldin added.
He said that this year the volume of transit of Russian oil to China through Kazakhstan totalled 7,000,000 metric tons.
Edited by SI