ASTANA — Kazakhstan maintained its robust global market position in 2023, producing nearly 90 million tons of oil and nearly 60 billion cubic meters of gas. This year, gas production is expected to increase to just a little over 60 billion cubic meters, reported the Kazakh Ministry of Energy on April 26.
Photo credit: Kazakh Ministry of Energy
In 2023, 70.5 million tons of oil were exported, and 17.5 million tons were supplied to the domestic market. In 2022, out of 84.2 million tons of oil produced, 64.3 million tons were exported and 17.9 million tons were reserved for the domestic market.
According to Askhat Khasenov, Kazakh Vice Minister of Energy, domestic enterprises are gearing up to boost their oil processing capacities to 27 million tons annually.
The Shymkent Oil Refinery aims to double its annual oil processing capacity from 6 to 12 million tons. The Pavlodar Oil Refinery plans to increase its capacity from 5.5 to 8 million tons annually through a two-phased approach. CaspiBitum anticipates increasing its oil processing capacity from 1 to 1.5 million tons per year. Atyrau Oil Refinery targets an increase from 0.7 to 1 million tons per year in secondary oil processing capacities.
“These projects signify a concerted effort to increase the depth of oil processing, at refineries from 75-80% to 87%. This will improve the quality of light oil products available in the domestic market and produce high-value petrochemical products,” said Khasenov.
In 2023, the volume of gas production in Kazakhstan, primarily associated with petroleum gas (APG), reached 59.063 billion cubic meters, including contributions from sites such as Tengiz (16.009 billion cubic meters), Karachaganak (22.385 billion cubic meters), Kashagan (11.856 billion cubic meters) and others (8.813 billion cubic meters).
The production of marketable gas, which refers to the volume of gas available for sale after the processing and purification process is complete, was 29.8 billion cubic meters. Some 19.43 billion cubic meters were supplied to the domestic market, 5.6 billion cubic meters were exported, and 4.8 billion cubic meters were allocated for the technological needs of subsoil users.
The plan for 2024 is to produce over 60 billion cubic meters, including 28.054 billion cubic meters of marketable gas. The domestic consumption is projected to be 20.9 billion cubic meters.
