Kazakhstan’s key oil terminal stops operations due to storm, repairs

Operations at Kazakhstan's Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) Marine Terminal have been suspended due to severe weather conditions, the company confirmed.

On December 29, the terminal halted oil transshipment and temporarily stopped receiving crude oil after storage capacities reached their limit, the CPC reported.

The suspension comes amid ongoing operational challenges. Terminal activities have been further impacted by damage to Single Point Mooring-2 (SPM-2) following an attack by an unmanned surface vessel, while repair work on SPM-3 is being conducted under harsh winter conditions.

The CPC pipeline remains a critical conduit for Kazakhstan’s energy exports, transporting up to 80% of the country’s crude oil destined for international markets.

Oil output in Kazakhstan declined by around 6% in December, led by a fall at the vast Chevron-led (CVX.N), opens new tab Tengiz oilfield after a Ukrainian drone attack damaged Russia's Black Sea exporting terminal, an industry source said on Monday.

Ukraine has intensified attacks on Russian energy infrastructure in recent months as it seeks to cut Moscow's revenues and its military strength.

Its November 29 drone attack at the Yuzhnaya Ozereevka oil terminal of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, which handles around 80% of Kazakhstan's oil exports, has disrupted oil sales from Kazakhstan as well as from Russia and drew a rebuke from Kazakhstan's government.

By Vafa Guliyeva