Kazakhstan military to clear Caspian Sea route for planned oil pipelines

Kazakhstan’s military will carry out operations in a section of the Caspian Sea to prepare a route for planned underwater oil pipelines, according to draft amendments to the country’s Tax Code.

The draft legislation, published for public consultation through September 25, states that Kazakhstan’s Defence Ministry will clear mines from Area No. 200 in the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea, Caliber.Az reports via Kazakh media. 

The area is expected to accommodate underwater pipelines linked to the Kalamkas-More and Khazar investment project.

“The Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Kazakhstan will carry out demining operations in Area No. 200 of the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea, through which the routes of the planned underwater oil pipelines for the ‘Kalamkas-More and Khazar’ investment project will pass,” the draft states.

A memorandum of cooperation between Kazakhstan’s Defence Ministry, Energy Ministry and Kalamkas-Khazar Operating was signed in May 2025.

Under the agreement, Kalamkas-Khazar Operating will purchase specialised equipment required for the demining operation and transfer ownership of the equipment to the Defence Ministry.

The bill’s explanatory note says the Defence Ministry’s underwater search-and-rescue and explosive ordnance disposal operations will not generate income for Kalamkas-Khazar Operating for the purposes of calculating corporate income tax or the alternative subsoil use tax.

By Sabina Mammadli