Kazakhstan to build new oil refinery by 2040, lifting capacity to 40 mln tonnesKazakhstan plans to raise its oil refining capacity to 40 million tonnes a year by 2040 with the launch of a new large refinery, Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov said Tuesday.“By 2040, we will launch a new refinery with a capacity of 10 million tonnes of oil in a modern fuel and petrochemical configuration, bringing total national refining capacity to 40 million tonnes from today’s 30 million,” Akkenzhenov told a government meeting.He said the plant will have a refining depth of 95%. According to the minister, the projects will fully meet rising domestic demand for petroleum products and enable additional exports to neighboring countries.Akkenzhenov also said Kazakhstan expects a gradual improvement in fuel quality by 2040, shifting from the current K4 environmental standard to K5+.Earlier, officials said Kazakhstan aimed to more than double its refining capacity to 39 million tonnes by 2040. In October, Talgat Makulov, head of the oil transportation and processing department at the Energy Ministry, presented a long-term development concept for 2025–2040 at the Kazakhstan Energy Week 2025 conference.Makulov said expected investment in the sector would range from $15 billion to $19 billion, driven by increased refining capacity from 18 million to 39 million tonnes per year, alongside significant gains in refining efficiency.The strategy sets a key target of improving the ratio of oil production to refining from 5:1 to 2.5:1. It also emphasizes tighter environmental standards and reduced emissions.The Energy Ministry says future plans include expanding existing facilities and constructing integrated, high-tech refineries and petrochemical complexes capable of adjusting output to market needs.Kazakhstan currently has three major refineries — Pavlodar Petrochemical Plant, PetroKazakhstan Oil Products in Shymkent, and Atyrau Oil Refinery. The country refined 17.9 million tonnes of oil in 2024, and the target for this year remains unchanged. (ICE ALMATY)

Fonte notizia: INTERFAX