Russian gas supplies to Kazakhstan could triple by end of decade - lawmaker
MOSCOW. Dec 8 (Interfax) - Russian gas supplies to Kazakhstan could more than triple by the end of the decade, Nikolai Shulginov, chairman of the Russian State Duma's Energy Committee, said at a meeting of the Inter-parliamentary Commission for Cooperation with Kazakhstan.
Shulginov said Russia's Gazprom was supplying gas to the West Kazakhstan, Kostanay and Aktobe regions of Kazakhstan, and Russian gas supplies were increasing in line with Kazakhstan's growing needs. Connecting Kazakhstan's northern regions to gas pipelines being explored.
"The potential for cooperation is vast. Supplies totaled 3.8 billion cubic meters per year in 2024, but it is forecast they will grow to 12 bcm by 2028," the Energy Committee's press service quoted Shulginov as saying.
Gazprom and Kazakhstan in October 2025 signed a memorandum on the construction of a new trunk gas pipeline from Russia to Kazakhstan. This project could play a significant role in redirecting Russian pipeline gas exports, he said.
"Decisions on the project to build two coal-fired combined heat and power plants in Kazakhstan are on the verge of being made. Both sides need to draft the relevant agreements, including the loan agreement, as quickly as possible so that they can be signed no later than the first quarter of 2026," he said.
Shulginov said Russia was interested in collaborating in hydropower and responsible water use. A key issue is the equitable management of the Irtysh River's water resources, given Kazakhstan's plans to build two large hydroelectric power plants - Semipalatinsk HPP and the second stage of the Shulbinsk HPP. "We consider it important to coordinate all steps to develop the Irtysh basin, which supports life and drives the economy of regions that are home to millions of people. Russia certainly supports Kazakhstan's initiatives to deliver hydropower projects to develop its economy and ensure uninterrupted energy supplies to homes. We are ready to draw on our own hydropower expertise to provide the necessary assistance," Shulginov said.
He also expressed gratitude for Kazakhstan's support for an initiative to grant JSC System Operator UES full membership of the Central Asia Electric Power Coordination Council (CAEPCC) and alerted that Kazakh partners to need for System Operator to be involved in decision-making by the Energy Coordination Dispatch Center , at least on technological issues, since the reliability of the historically interconnected energy systems of Russia and the countries of Central Asia depends on this.
Kazakhstan's government signed a strategic partnership agreement with Gazprom in 2023, covering gas supply, transportation, processing, exploration and production. The parties are discussing a pipeline project to transport 45 billion cubic meters of gas annually, of which 10 bcm would be supplied to Kazakhstan's northeastern regions and 35 bcm would be exported to China.
A trunk pipeline to supply gas to consumers in Kazakhstan's northern and northeastern regions has already been included in the Russian government's territorial planning scheme for federal transport. The planned throughput capacity of the pipeline is 10 bcm per year, with pump station capacity of 50 MW.
