Suspension of operations at Orenburg gas processing plant had no effect on gas exports to Kazakhstan - Kazakh energy ministry
ASTANA. Oct 20 (Interfax) - The Kazakh Ministry of Energy has denied reports by several Kazakh media outlets of interruptions in the country's gas supply due to the suspension of operations at the Orenburg Gas Processing Plant.
"The suspension of operations at the Orenburg Gas Processing Plant has had no effect on gas exports to Kazakhstan," the ministry said in a statement.
It said that there had been no interruptions to gas supply in Astana and other regions of Kazakhstan, despite the information propagated by a series of media outlets.
"Gas supply to gasified regions of the country, the capital included, proceeds as usual, with the full volumes, and without any restrictions. The stability of supply is guaranteed by reserve mechanisms which have been put in place in advance. Any portion of the planned volume which is not supplied is promptly substituted under existing contracts, and there is therefore no gas deficit for domestic consumers, including thermal power plants in the capital, nor are any deficits predicted," the ministry's statement reads.
The ministry said that the government was constantly monitoring the situation.
An emergency occurred at the Orenburg Gas Processing Plant due to a drone attack on October 19, 2025, forcing the plant to temporarily stop receiving crude gas from the Karachaganak field.
Gazprom and KazMunayGas have been cooperating since 2002 as part of the KazRosGas joint commercial venture, which the companies established on a parity basis to purchase gas from the Karachaganak field, process it at the Orenburg Gas Processing Plant, and sell it to consumers in Kazakhstan and Russia.
In 2007, Karachaganak Petroleum Operating BV and KazRosGas signed a long-term contract for the purchase and sale of gas from the Karachaganak field, which was extended in 2015 to 2038, for up to 9 billion cubic meters per year.
The Karachaganak field is one of the largest in the world. Its oil reserves amount to 1.2 billion tonnes, while gas reserves amount to 1.35 trillion cubic meters.
