Kazakhstan closer to Moscow. Gazprom will build a new gas pipeline with Kazakhstan

Representatives of the government of Kazakhstan and the Russian company Gazprom have recently signed a memorandum on the construction of a new gas pipeline. For Astana, the investment may mean a further increase in energy dependence on Moscow, according to Radio Svoboda.

The document was signed by the Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, Roman Sklar, and the president of Gazprom, Alexei Miller. The exact route of the pipeline and investment costs have not been announced yet. All we know is that gas from the Kazakh Karachaganak field is to be processed in Russia's Orenburg.

According to the Kazakh authorities, the country has 3.8 trillion cubic meters of natural gas, which ranks it 22nd in the world in terms of resources of this raw material. Despite such huge reserves, production has been declining in recent years. The situation is similar – notes Radio Swoboda – in neighboring Uzbekistan, which has transformed from a gas exporter into an importer. For two years, Russian gas has been flowing through Kazakhstan along the old Central Asia-Central route, built in the 1960s.

After losing the European market, Russia is increasingly focusing its raw material policy on Central Asia. In 2022, Russian leader Vladimir Putin proposed the creation of a trilateral “gas alliance” with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Now this idea is taking real shape, countries are implementing joint transmission projects, and the President of Kazakhstan Kasym-Jomart Tokayev describes cooperation as the foundation of the region's new energy system.

Radio Svoboda emphasizes that despite huge reserves, Kazakhstan is struggling with a gas shortage on the domestic market. The lack of a gas pipeline connecting the western part of the country, where the deposits are located, with the east means that the raw material must be imported from Russia. In addition, as much as 60 percent extracted gas is a raw material accompanying oil and containing numerous pollutants. To make it suitable for use, it requires expensive processing, which Kazakh plants are not able to carry out. For years, gas was delivered to the Orenburg plant, and Kazakhstan bought the finished product. The authorities announce the construction of four gas processing plants by 2030.

Experts indicate that the basic problem in Kazakhstan is the lack of investments. No new deposits have been discovered in the country for three decades, and all key fields – Tengiz, Karachaganak and Kashagan – date back to Soviet times. The growing population and limited production make gas imports from Russia a necessity.

The cost of building a modern gas processing plant is estimated at approximately USD 6 billion. The government of Kazakhstan is negotiating with large corporations such as Chevron, ENI and Shell about co-financing the project, but so far to no avail. The reasons include: unpredictable market regulations and political risk. According to a report by the Atlantic Council, the Central Asia region is perceived as a high-risk investment environment, dominated by the influence of Russia and China. As a result, Kazakhstan, rich in energy resources, cannot become independent from Russia. The government in Astana announces the diversification and development of infrastructure, but the implementation of these plans requires capital, which is in short supply, concludes the Radio Svoboda website. (PAP)

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