Kazakhstan Railways (KTZ) has implemented a temporary ban on the import of jet fuel from Russia. The ban came into effect on 14 June and will remain valid for a month. The request for the ban on jet fuel was made by the Kazakhstan Ministry of Energy.

The reason for the Russian jet fuel import ban, as explained by Interfax, is the oversupply of aviation kerosene. Currently, the hot weather in Kazakhstan, with temperatures ranging from 20 to 30 degrees Celsius, has raised safety concerns for railway operations. There are over 420 tank cars on the railway near Almaty, along with another 100 outside Astana.

The excess stock has also been influenced by reduced demand from airlines and airports, resulting in a decrease in production at Kazakhstan’s domestic refineries. KTZ stated that the ban could be lifted once the situation improves. However, this is not the first time this year that Kazakhstan has imposed a restriction on the transportation of oil products in relation to Russia.

Another Russian ban

Kazakhstan Railways (KTZ) banned the transportation of oil products to the Russian port of Taman starting on 8 May. KTZ’s decision to stop oil transport via rail towards the Taman port might relate to several factors. For instance, a Reuters report from August 2022 claimed that Kazakhstan would start to use Azerbaijan’s biggest oil pipeline to sell its crude oil. This move would create an alternative route bypassing Russia since, until now, Kazakh oil was exported via the CPC pipeline crossing Russia to the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, near Tamar.

Russia has threatened to shut down this pipeline multiple times, forcing Kazakhstan to look for viable and stable alternatives. In response to the threats of cutting off its oil supply chain, Kazakhstan said it would ban the transport of products sanctioned by the EU and the US to Russia and Belarus. No concrete action has been taken in this regard since then. However, the latest development might be part of Kazakhstan’s diversification strategy, which does not want to see its oil products transiting through Russia anymore, at least until the situation stabilises.

Also read:

• Kazakhstan bans oil transport via rail to Russian port
• Russian fuel already finds its way to Iran via INSTC’s eastern branch
• Kazakhstan keeps increasing volumes on the Middle Corridor