Page 8 - FSUOGM Week 33 2019

FSUOGM PIPELINES & TRANSPORT FSUOGM
Kazakhstan launches gasoline exports to Tajikistan
KAZAKHSTAN
Exports to Kyrgyzstan has taken longer than anticipated to arrange.
KAZAKHSTAN launched gasoline exports to Tajikistan in July, with shipments now averaging 20,000 tonnes per month, Kazakh Energy Min- ister Kanat Bozumbayev announced on August 16.
A er completing a lengthy modernisation programme at its three main re neries last year, Kazakhstan now enjoys a surplus of gasoline supply that can be exported. e government has predicted that overseas sales of the fuel will reach 500,000-600,000 tonnes this year, with the bulk seen heading to other Central Asian states as well as to Afghanistan.
Kazakhstan initially intended for Kyrgyzstan to be the rst recipient of its gasoline, suggest- ing that shipments could average 20,000 tonnes per month. However, the pair are yet to nalise a dra agreement on duty-free supplies.
At the end of last year Kazakhstan completed a $6bn investment project at its three Soviet-in- herited oil re neries in Atyrau, Pavlodar and Shymkent, enabling them to boost production of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel at the expense of heavier fuel output. Since then, the country has li ed a ban on gasoline exports that had been agreed with Moscow to prevent the re-export of duty-free Russian supplies.
By expanding gasoline exports, Kazakhstan would be encroaching on the market share of Russia, the region’s dominant supplier.
EAEU
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia are all mem- bers of the European Economic Union (EAEU), which also consists of Armenia and Belarus. e EAEU aims to establish a common market for oil, gas and petroleum products by 2025, doing away with the bilateral agreements and protec- tionist measures that currently cover the trade of these goods.
is will be no small feat.
Kazakhstan and other EAEU members typi- cally use restrictions on the import and export of fuel to safeguard against supply shortages and protect domestic producers from competition. While Kazakhstan has li ed its ban on gasoline exports, in April it prohibited diesel sales to other EAEU members. e measure was taken a er a spike in fuel prices in Russia led to an out- ow of diesel across the border, posing a risk to supply.
Meanwhile, Kyrgyzstan is anxious to protect its small-scale re ning industry from overseas competition. ™
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 33 21•August•2019