Qazaqgaz trying to change bank used to pay for transit of Russian gas

MOSCOW. April 24 (Interfax) - Kazakh national company QazaqGaz is negotiating to change the bank acting as the counterparty in operations to pay for the transit of Russian gas, the company's IFRS report said.

"There were no delays in payments from Russian companies in 2023, and there were no problems with the transfer of payments in favor of Russian companies. However, the group has been faced with questions regarding payment for purchased gas and receiving money for transit since October 2023. At the moment, there is official correspondence with the goal of changing the counterparty bank," the company said.

QazaqGaz said that gas transportation to Russia from Uzbekistan stopped in 2022. This had a negative impact on the group's revenue in the reporting year.

"However, the group entered into agreements for the transit of Russian gas to Uzbekistan in 2023, as well as for the purchase of Russian gas to cover internal gas shortages. (...) The group's management believes that the decrease in transit volumes will be compensated for by the recently launched return transit of Russian gas to Uzbekistan," QazaqGaz said.

As for Russian gas purchased for the internal needs of Kazakhstan, its share in the total volume of purchased gas in 2023 was 35% versus 31% in 2022, the report said.

As reported, supplies of Russian gas to Uzbekistan began through the Central Asia - Center gas transportation system in October 2023, when it was switched into reverse mode. The two-year agreement between UzGasTrade JSC and Gazprom Export LLC provides for an export volume of 9 million cubic meters per day, or almost 2.8 bcm per year. There are plans to sign medium-term fifteen-year gas supply contracts with Kazakhstan in summer 2024, as well as with Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. Their implementation should begin in the fall of 2025.

It was also reported that Russia supplied Kazakhstan with 500 mcm of gas in Q1 2024 to cover peak gas consumption in winter.