Kazakhstan to redirect petrochemical exports to Azerbaijan via Middle Corridor

Kazakhstan will redirect its petrochemical exports to Azerbaijan through the Middle Corridor, Asylbek Zhakiev, Chairman of the Board of Petrocouncil.kz, during the 2nd Caspian and Central Asia Oil Trading and Logistics Forum in Baku, Report informs.

Zhakiev noted that Kazakhstan's planned projects in the petrochemical and downstream sectors over the next five years have a total budget of $15 billion:

"By 2030, we aim to reach annual oil production of 100 million tons. Today, Kazakhstan is among the world's top 10 oil and gas producers. The critical issue for us now is how we will transport petrochemical products in the next five years. For example, under a $7.6 billion polyethylene production project, Kazakhstan plans to produce 1.2 million tons of product. Another project, worth $1.1 billion, involves producing 900,000 tons of butadiene. Azerbaijan and the Middle Corridor will undoubtedly be priority routes for us, as forecasts suggest the 'North' route may remain closed for the next 5–10 years."