Kazakhstan’s crude exports have not been affected by Monday’s drone attack on the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, which is the primary export outlet of Kazakh oil, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Energy said on Tuesday.
Oil shipments via the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) remain stable after intensified Ukrainian attacks on Monday hit a terminal at the port of Novorossiysk, Kazakhstan said.
The receipt and transportation of Kazakh crude through the main oil pipeline system are proceeding normally, and export plans are being fulfilled on schedule, Assel Serikpayeva, a representative of the Kazakh Energy Ministry, was quoted as saying by Astana Times.
Separately, Kazakhstan’s deputy energy minister said that “The work of our oil sector is stable and CPC exports continue to be stable.”
The CPC terminal, which is southwest of Novorossiysk, incurred damage to the single point mooring (SPM), loading infrastructure, and four storage tanks during Monday’s Ukrainian attack, Russia has said.
The terminal handles about 80% of Kazakhstan’s crude oil exports or 1.5% of daily global oil shipments.
The CPC terminal has become the focus of market attention at a time when crude oil supply from the Middle East is severely disrupted due to the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran is only selectively allowing a small number of energy cargoes to go through.
The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) operates the pipeline from the Caspian coast in northwest Kazakhstan to the Novorossiysk port, which handles most of Kazakhstan’s crude exports from giant oilfields in Kazakhstan operated by international oil firms, including U.S. supermajor Chevron. CPC transports crude oil from three major fields in Kazakhstan, Tengiz, Kashagan, and Karachaganak, in which major western companies have stakes, including Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell, and Eni.
The key Russian oil export terminal at Novorossiysk was on fire early on Monday following an overnight drone attack, as Ukraine intensifies strikes on Russia’s oil infrastructure to reduce its export capabilities amid surging oil prices.
By Michael Kern for Oilprice.com
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