Minister Akkenzhenov: Kazakhstan studying possibility of using Baku-Supsa oil pipeline

Kazakhstan does not rule out the possibility of using the Baku-Supsa pipeline to export its oil if an agreement to this effect is reached with Azerbaijan, minister of energy of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Yerlan Akkenzhenov, told Report.

“We are considering all routes [for exporting Kazakhstani oil], including Baku-Supsa. I did not say that it is commercially unattractive. But if we consider it geographically, our oil now goes through the Atyrau-Samara system, and directly through the Russian Federation to the Black Sea. That is, we deliver it in Kazakhstan and receive the same volume of oil on the Black Sea coast in Novorossiysk,” the minister noted.

According to him, the export of Kazakhstani oil via the Baku-Supsa pipeline with loading and unloading operations in the ports of Aktau and Baku will cost more than deliveries via the Russian route.

“In the case of Baku-Supsa, oil will be loaded into tankers in the port of Aktau, unloaded in the port of Baku, then loaded into the Baku-Supsa system and we will receive it in the Black Sea. That is, this is double loading and unloading. And in terms of economic indicators, this will be more expensive for our shippers. Therefore, this issue is currently being studied,” the minister said.

Akkenzhenov also noted that no additional financial investments in the modernization of this oil pipeline will be required to export Kazakh oil via the Baku-Supsa pipeline.

“Baku-Supsa" is currently used for technical oil and it can be used if Kazakhstan comes to an agreement with the Azerbaijani side,” Akkenzhenov said. The Baku-Supsa oil pipeline was commissioned on April 17, 1999. The length of the pipeline is 837 km, and the diameter is 530 mm. The pipeline with a capacity of 7.5 million tons of oil per year was built under the contract for the development of the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli fields.

Currently, only individual batches of oil are transported via the Baku-Supsa oil pipeline. Thus, according to the annual report of the Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan, 90,000 tons of oil were pumped through it in 2024, and 150,000 tons in 2023.

BP-Azerbaijan reported that the Baku-Supsa oil pipeline is not frozen and is fully prepared to begin transporting oil at any time.