Kazakhstan Reduced Oil Production: CPC Pipeline and Impacts on Romania

Kazakhstan's oil and condensate production dropped from an average of 2.07 million barrels per day in July to 1.63 million barrels on a specific day. The biggest reason for this cut in production is that production at Tengiz, the country's largest oil field managed by Chevron, fell by more than half to approximately 406 thousand barrels per day. The Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan confirmed that producers made this technical adjustment due to inlet restrictions on the CPC pipeline and full storage capacities.

Following drone attacks on the terminal in the Black Sea, the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) temporarily stopped accepting Kazakh oil. The CPC pipeline is responsible for transporting about 2 percent of the world's oil, and this situation further increases concerns regarding global oil supply. The inability of Kazakh oil to reach Europe means a new crisis for regional refineries.

The production decline in Kazakhstan, Europe's second-largest oil supplier, directly affects Romania. Kazakhstan, which operates in Romania and is the country's most important oil supplier, is the main crude oil source for the Petromidia and Petrobrazi refineries. The Petromidia refinery largely operates on Kazakh oil, while Petrobrazi partially operates on it.