Kazakhstan will come up with an initiative to ensure the security of the port of Novorossiysk

The authorities of Kazakhstan want to come up with a diplomatic initiative to ensure the security of the port in Novorossiysk. This was stated by the Minister of Energy of the country Almasadam Satkaliyev, the order to consider the issue of the security of the Novorossiysk port came from the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Alikhan Smailov. “As for ensuring the safety of the port, of course, Kazakhstan will take an initiative at the political level to ensure the stable operation of this port, based on the fact that the beneficiaries of the operation of the oil terminal are large global consumers, including those from the European Union,” noted Satkaliev. He also added that the relevant work should be carried out through intergovernmental dialogue and through diplomatic channels. When the initiative will be announced and what it will consist of, Kazakh officials did not explain.

The marine terminal of the Tengiz-Novorossiysk pipeline of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) is located in Novorossiysk. This pipeline, 1,511 kilometers long, is the main export artery of Kazakhstan’s oil industry, carrying more than 80% of Kazakhstan’s oil. Kazakhstan has the second largest stake in CPC after Russia – 20.75% against 31%. Other CPC shareholders are “Lukoil”, Chevron, Rosneft-Shell Caspian Ventures Limited and others.

The Kazakh initiative is due to the August 4 incident. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Novorossiysk water area was attacked by Ukrainian unmanned boats. As a result of the attack, the Olenegorsky Miner large landing ship was damaged by one boat, the second was destroyed by the Suvorovets anti-sabotage boat of the Russian Navy. A day later, on the night of August 5, as a result of an attack by the same Ukrainian boat, the Sig oil tanker was damaged, while the ship remained afloat, and the crew was not injured. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called the attack on the tanker a terrorist and imminent environmental disaster.

CPC infrastructure was not damaged during these attacks, according to the company. Representatives of the company also reported that at that time, loading on moored tankers was carried out in the normal mode. At the same time, on August 4, a temporary ban on the movement of ships in the port of Novorossiysk was introduced, which was soon lifted.

For Kazakhstan, the issue of the operation of the CPC pipeline and the supply of oil to the West is acute, explains Stanislav Pritchin, senior researcher for the Central Asia sector of the Center for Post-Soviet Studies at IMEMO. About 80-90% of Kazakh oil exports go through the Novorossiysk port, and any problems with this channel directly affect the export potential of Kazakhstan. It is obvious that an attempt to strike civilian objects in Novorossiysk will affect exports through the Tengiz-Novorossiysk oil pipeline.

Kazakhstan, Pritchin adds, is not afraid of Western sanctions, but of losing profits, and therefore is ready to take initiatives to ensure the security of the Novorossiysk port in order to demilitarize this zone as much as possible. Western companies have a similar position, which do not want Novorossiysk to become a zone of attacks, since mainly Western companies like Chevron, interested in the normal operation of the export channel, are engaged in oil production in Kazakhstan. But it is not clear how ready Ukraine is to refrain from attacks on the port of Novorossiysk, the expert concludes.

Vedomosti sent a request to the Foreign Ministry.