Baku: Around 250,000 tons of oil produced at Kazakhstan's Kashagan field are expected to be transported this year via the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline, Kuanish Keskinbayev, Deputy General Director for Commercial Affairs of KMG Kashagan B.V. (National Company of Kazakhstan KazMunayGaz), said in a statement to APA-Economics.

According to Azeri-Press News Agency, the decision to use the BTC pipeline aligns with the strategic interests of the Kazakh side as it offers access to the Mediterranean Sea. This route is considered more advantageous compared to the Baku-Supsa pipeline, which leads to the Black Sea. Keskinbayev emphasized that the Kazakh side already has access to the Black Sea through other routes, making the BTC's access to the Mediterranean more appealing, especially considering the high tariffs associated with the Baku-Supsa pipeline.

In 2022, an agreement on the transit of Kazakh oil was signed between KazMunayGas and SOCAR. The Kashagan field, which produced 18.2 million tons of oil last year, remains a significant source of Kazakhstan's oil exports. Keskinbayev also highlighted that a temporary decrease in production is expected at the field in 2026 due to planned major maintenance, which is scheduled to last about one and a half months starting in June.