Kazakhstan has reduced gas production at the Karachaganak oil and gas condensate field following a Ukrainian drone attack on Russia’s Orenburg gas processing plant earlier this week, Energy Minister Erlan Akkenzhenov said on Friday.
The Karachaganak field, which counts and among its stakeholders, normally sends raw gas across the border to the Orenburg facility for processing.
Ukraine confirmed on Wednesday that it carried out a strike on the plant, which is located roughly 1,700 kilometres east of Ukraine.
Because oil and gas production at Karachaganak are closely connected, a reduction in gas output has also affected oil production at the field.
The Orenburg facility was previously targeted in another attack in October.
“Naturally, we have reduced the gas intake,” Akkenzhenov said. “However, gas supplies to all of Kazakhstan have not been interrupted.”
The minister said oil and gas condensate production at Karachaganak had fallen by around 25%, declining to 25,000 metric tonnes per day, equivalent to 196,500 barrels per day, from approximately 34,000 tonnes.
The field produced about 263,000 barrels per day of oil in 2024. Its output was exported through the via a Russian Black Sea terminal, while some shipments also moved through Russia’s Druzhba pipeline to Germany.
Gas deliveries from Karachaganak to Orenburg operate under a long-term supply agreement between (KPO) and , which remains in place until 2038.
Other stakeholders in the Karachaganak project include , and Kazakhstan’s .
Ukraine has said its long-range drone attacks against Russian energy infrastructure are aimed at reducing a major source of funding for Moscow’s military operations and bringing the impact of the war closer to the Russian public.
Russian President has accused Ukraine of targeting civilian infrastructure in an effort to create public unrest.
Akkenzhenov said Russia has not formally requested fuel supplies from Kazakhstan.
However, four industry sources told Reuters on Wednesday that Russia was negotiating with Kazakhstan to import around 50,000 metric tonnes of AI-92 gasoline to address a domestic shortage linked to refinery disruptions and unexpected maintenance work.
