ALMATY – Oil loading operations at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) marine terminal were suspended after two tankers carrying Kazakh crude came under a drone attack on July 19, prompting authorities to assess the damage before exports can resume. According to the Kazakh Ministry of Energy, the tankers ASIA and NISSOS IOS were loading oil produced in Kazakhstan when they were attacked at the CPC terminal on the Black Sea.
Both vessels carried multinational crews. Fires broke out aboard the ships but were quickly extinguished by the crews. No injuries were reported, while the terminal’s offshore Single Point Moorings (SPM)-1 and SPM-3 sustained no damage. Authorities also confirmed that no oil was spilled into the sea.
The ministry said oil loading has been temporarily halted pending an assessment of the incident’s consequences. Further information on the resumption of exports will be released once the evaluation is completed. The CPC pipeline is Kazakhstan’s primary crude oil export route, transporting the majority of the country’s oil exports from West Kazakhstan to the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiysk for shipment to international markets.
In a statement issued after the attack, the Ministry of Energy condemned strikes on civilian energy infrastructure. “Any use of force against international civilian energy infrastructure creates risks for global energy security, disrupts the uninterrupted functioning of international energy trade, and causes significant economic damage to all participants in the project,” reads the statement.
The latest statement follows drone attacks on civilian vessels transporting oil through CPC infrastructure on July 17 and earlier on July 19, which Kazakhstan also condemned as threats to international energy security.