ASTANA – The price of Kazakh oil has reached $79.87 per barrel, Kazinform reported on Jan. 30.
Photo credit: inbusiness.kz
Meanwhile, Brent crude oil has been declining for five consecutive days. Since Jan. 24, its price on the London International Exchange (ICE Futures) has dropped from $78.85 to $75.42 per barrel as of 12 p.m. Astana time.
Market dynamics are currently shifting. At the end of 2024, OPEC+ agreed to delay production increases until April and extend output curbs until the end of 2026. The alliance’s next meeting on Feb. 3 will determine further strategies.
Financial analyst Andrei Chebotarev noted that Kazakhstan will struggle to limit oil production due to its plans to increase output this year, particularly with the Tengiz oilfield expansion. The project is expected to boost Kazakhstan’s global crude oil supply share to 1%.
The Kazakh government announced plans to increase oil and gas condensate production this year to 96.2 million tons – up from 87.56 million tons in 2024. This exceeds the country’s the OPEC+ quota of 1.468 million barrels per day, Chebotarev added.
In the meantime, Kazinform reports that natural gas prices stand at $3.16 per million BTU (British Thermal Unit equivalent to 293 kilowatt-hours). Lithium prices increased to $10.85 per kilogram over the week, while global coal prices dropped to $114.8 per ton. Uranium prices declined to $152.54 per kilogram. Gold prices rose to $88,752 per kilogram, with a gram now costing $88.75.
According to Reuters, President of the United States Donald Trump laid out a plan to help maximize oil and gas production, including by declaring a national energy emergency to speed permitting and rolling back environmental protections. He has also publicly called on OPEC and its leading member, Saudi Arabia, to lower oil prices, saying doing so would end the conflict in Ukraine.
