The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) pipeline is no longer receiving oil from Kazakhstan after suspending crude oil loading on ships on Monday due to attacks on oil tankers at its Black Sea terminal, according to Agerpres.
However, two of the sources cited by the news agencies stated that the oil tanks at the terminal are full.
The CPC is a 1,510 km oil pipeline that connects oil fields in Kazakhstan with the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. Oil loaded at Novorossiysk is then transported by tankers to world markets. The CPC pipeline carries about 80% of Kazakhstan’s oil exports, including those from fields operated by Western companies such as Chevron, ExxonMobil, Eni and Shell, but it is also used to transport Russian oil.
On Monday, the operator of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) announced that oil loading operations at its Black Sea port terminal, located off the Russian port of Novorossiysk, had been suspended following drone attacks on oil tankers.
Russia has accused Ukraine of targeting tankers loading oil at the CPC terminal as part of a strategy to destabilize global oil markets.
Data from ship-tracking firm LSEG shows that at least two tankers had planned to arrive at the CPC terminal to load oil but changed course.
“Chevron continues to monitor the situation at the CPC. The safety and security of personnel remains our top priority. Any further questions regarding the CPC should be directed to that entity,” U.S. oil group Chevron, which owns a 15 percent stake in CPC, said in an emailed statement.
The suspension of oil loadings at the CPC terminal, which exports nearly 2% of global oil, adds to concerns about oil supplies at a time when the Iran war has already disrupted supplies from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf producers.
The Kazakh government said on Monday that CPC’s loading facilities were not damaged in the attacks.
Oil deliveries through the CPC fell 7% in June from May to 1.699 million barrels per day, according to sources cited by Reuters, due to an accident at the Tengiz oil field in late May and lower volumes of Russian crude.
CPC’s shareholders are the Russian Federation (31%); Kazakhstan (with a 20.75% stake, divided between KazMunayGas with 19% and Kazakhstan Pipeline Ventures LLC with 1.75%); Chevron Caspian Pipeline Consortium Company (15%); Lukoil International GmbH (12.5%); Mobil Caspian Pipeline Company (7.5%); Rosneft-Shell Caspian Ventures Limited (7.5%); BG Overseas Holding Limited (2%); Eni International N.A. N.W. (2%); and Oryx Caspian Pipeline LLC (1.75%).