President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev and President of Russia Vladimir Putin held a ceremony on Saturday, 7 October, to launch the transit of Russian natural gas through Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan via the Central Asia–Center main gas pipeline.
Tokayev is on a working visit to Moscow, the press service of the President of Kazakhstan reports.
The President of Uzbekistan is also on an official visit to Russia.
“The project will ensure the diversification of Russian gas exports, will contribute to the expansion and modernization of Kazakhstan’s gas transportation infrastructure and will meet the growing needs of Uzbekistan for natural gas in the amount of up to 3 billion cubic meters per year. It will also give a powerful impetus to the industrial development of our countries, improve the business climate, improve the standard of living of citizens,” the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said, speaking at the ceremony.
“The gas industry plays a big, one might say, a special role in the sustainable socio-economic progress of our states. Therefore, this project meets the interests of all parties involved. Kazakhstan has completed the preparation of the main gas pipeline on its territory in a timely manner and in full,” Tokayev said.
The President of Kazakhstan highlighted the role of the project in strengthening regional stability and energy security in Central Asia.
“More than 20,000 kilometers of main gas pipelines with an annual capacity of up to 255 billion cubic meters pass through the territory of Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan is interested in the full use of its transit potential and is ready to further increase the volume of Russian gas transportation,” Kazakhstan’s leader stressed.
In his speech, Putin recalled that in June this year, on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, a contract was signed for the export of Russian gas to Uzbekistan and a contract for its transportation through Kazakhstan, according to which Russia will supply 2.8 billion cubic meters of gas to Uzbek consumers in the next two years.
He noted the large-scale and challenging task faced specialists from the three countries: to diagnose, repair, and technically re-equip gas transportation facilities, including those that have been out of service for a long time.
“The scope of work done in a short time is really impressive. In Russia, the Alexandrov Guy gas measuring station in the Saratov region has been modernized. Pipes have been repaired in Kazakhstan and pumping capacities have been released. A gas measuring station and a new section of the Bukhara–Ural pipeline have been built in Uzbekistan,” Putin said.
Underscoring the benefits of the project, the Russian leader emphasized that it would provide Uzbekistan with an additional source of energy to guarantee uninterrupted heat and electricity supply for households and essential facilities, and solve Kazakhstan’s issue of gasifying its northern and eastern regions. Gazprom is already working out the appropriate routes and gas supply parameters.
President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev expressed gratitude to the leaders of Kazakhstan and Russia for their personal support in the implementation of this project. He also thanked the specialists who took part in the work on the organization of gas supplies in the shortest possible time, the reconstruction of sections of the main gas pipeline, the modernization of compressor stations and the construction of a new gas measuring station “Beineu”.
The launched import of Russian gas in reverse mode is of strategic importance for Uzbekistan, he said.
“This project is an important factor in the energy security of our country and the entire region, reliable and guaranteed supplies of “blue fuel”, secondly, it is additional volumes of gas for the uninterrupted supply of carbon to sectors of the economy and the population,” the Uzbek leader added.
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To implement the project of delivering Russian energy resources to Uzbekistan, the Central Asia – Center gas pipeline, one of the largest trans-main gas pipelines built in the 1960s, will now operate in reverse mode.
Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Board, speaking at the ceremony from the Lakhta Center in St. Petersburg, noted: “Today we are giving new life to the Central Asia–Center trunk pipeline system.”
“Repair and restoration works, works on technical re-equipment, reconstruction, new construction were carried out along the 1,760 km long section in Russia, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. And this complex of works was completed in the shortest possible time – three and a half months,” he said.
According to the supply scheme, gas from Russia’s unified gas supply system flows to the border with Kazakhstan, then through a dedicated gas transportation corridor to the border of Uzbekistan, and onward to consumers, the head of Gazprom reported.
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During the teleconference, the Minister of Energy of Kazakhstan Almasadam Satkaliyev from the Makat compressor station in Atyrau region reported on the readiness of the Kazakh part of the Central Asia – Center main gas pipeline.
The Minister of Energy of Uzbekistan Zhurabek Mirzamakhmudov addressed from the gas measuring station “Karakalpakia”.
Having reported on the readiness of the infrastructure and the completion of preparatory work, they asked the Presidents of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Russia to give permission to start deliveries.
Then the leaders of the three countries gave permission to launch the transit of Russian gas to Uzbekistan through the territory of Kazakhstan.
“The gas has been supplied, the pressure in the main line corresponds to the specified parameters, all systems are working normally,” the specialist of the Alexandrov Guy gas compressor station located on the border of Kazakhstan and Russia reported. ///nCa, 7 October 2023
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