Kazakhstan Seeks Capacity to Pipe Crude Oil to Germany

Kazakhstan’s oil-pipeline operator sent a request to its Russian counterpart to send Kazakh crude via the Druzhba pipeline to Germany next year.

It could be a first step to get Kazakh oil flowing to German refineries as the country tries to find alternatives to Russian supply. While piped deliveries are exempt from European sanctions, Germany has pledged to wean itself off Russian crude by the end of this year following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

KazTransOil JSC asked Russia’s Transneft PJSC for transit capacity to send 1.2 million tons of Kazakh crude via Belarus toward Poland’s Adamowo-Zastawa intake point for onward supply to Germany, the Kazakh company said Thursday.

The request will require approval from Russia’s Energy Ministry, but “technically it’s possible” to deliver those volumes, Transneft spokesman Igor Dyomin said by phone. “But we still haven’t received any requests from Kazakh oil producers,” he said.

Russia is ready to support Kazakhstan’s request for transporting crude to Germany through Druzhba, Interfax reported, citing Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak. 

Germany has been negotiating with Kazakhstan for oil to replace Russian supply, but talks have not yet concluded. Under current sanctions, it’s permissible to use the existing pipeline network for Kazakh crude, according to the German Economy Ministry.

Neighboring Poland has also vowed to stop importing Russian oil by the end of December, but has said that halting pipeline flows might require additional sanctions. Transneft said Thursday that its January shipment plan includes sending 500,000 tons of Russian crude to Poland via Belarus.

--With assistance from Nariman Gizitdinov.