Media reports that the attack by sea drones actually paralyzed the work of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), a key hub for supplying Kazakh oil to world markets.
According to an anonymous Bloomberg source, one of the berths at the CPC marine terminal is damaged, and another is currently undergoing scheduled maintenance, which could last until mid-January due to seasonal storms in the Black Sea.
In response to a media request, CPC representatives confirmed that “any further operations at the berth are impossible.” According to the agency, Kazakhstan, which previously supplied about 1.5 million barrels of crude oil per day through the CPC, has now activated a plan to redirect exports to alternative routes to maintain production volumes.
Context
Since the beginning of 2024, Ukraine has intensified attacks on oil infrastructure in Russia. President Vladimir Zelensky noted that Ukraine is forced to respond with strikes in response to Russian air attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities.
On November 28, a fire was reported on the Virat vessel after the attack, as well as on the Kairos tanker, which were heading to the Russian port of Novorossiysk. The empty Kairos tanker caught fire due to an external factor, Turkey's General Maritime Administration said. Both vessels supposedly belong to the “shadow fleet” of the Russian Federation, fly the Gambian flag and are under international sanctions. On the morning of November 29, in the Black Sea off the coast of Turkey, Ukrainian Sea Baby drones damaged the Virat tanker.
Marine drones also attacked the CPC marine terminal, which operates the Caspian oil pipeline, which carries oil from Western Kazakhstan and Russia to terminals near Novorossiysk for further export. Following the attack, Novorossiysk port authorities ordered the suspension of all operations at the facility.
The Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan immediately responded, calling the oil pipeline an object of critical infrastructure and linking the strike to global risks. The country's Foreign Ministry also expressed an official protest and noted that it expects concrete actions from Kyiv to prevent similar incidents in the future.
