Expert: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan should develop additional oil routes

Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan need to develop additional oil export routes rather than replace existing infrastructure, an industry expert has said.

Colin Nesbeth, founder and director of Central Asia Marketing, made the remarks at the 2nd Oil Trading and Transport Forum “Caspian and Central Asia” in Baku, Caliber.Az reports via local media.

He said substantial investment is required in rail and port infrastructure on both sides of the Caspian Sea. One key solution, he noted, could be the deployment of offshore single-point mooring systems.

“The idea is that these mooring systems are installed in the sea, around 2–3 kilometres from the shore. In particular, off the coast of Baku and Kuryk, the SAL system promoted by APL can be used.

Unlike traditional mooring systems, which require tugboats to hold a tanker in position, SAL technology eliminates the need for them,” Nesbeth said.

He stressed that producers do not necessarily need to commit to large fixed volumes. Instead, he proposed so-called contingency contracts.

“This is a viable model: producers invest in upgrading capacity in Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan while signing a trigger-based contract. When urgent demand arises, the route is activated. The infrastructure is already in place, which benefits transit operators,” he explained.

Even relatively small volumes, such as 5 million tonnes per year out of a total production of 40 million tonnes, would be sufficient to maintain a reliable backup export route, he added.

Nesbeth also highlighted the importance of maintaining continuous oil flows towards Baku and onwards via the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline to preserve commercial relationships and ensure route readiness.

He said BTC remains the only viable option for light Kazakh condensate, with further shipments continuing by rail through Georgia.

By Aghakazim Guliyev