Tajikistan to Replace Kazakh Liquefied Petroleum Gas with Russian Supply in 2025

Tajikistan will begin replacing Kazakh liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) with Russian supplies in 2025, Oil and Gas of Kazakhstan reports. Tajik importers plan to increase rail deliveries from Russia next year, following the European Union’s embargo on Russian LPG imports, which took effect on December 20, 2024. As a result, Kazakhstan has redirected more of its LPG exports to Europe, making Russian LPG more competitively priced for Central Asian buyers. Last year, Tajikistan was the largest importer of Kazakh LPG, accounting for 48% of Kazakhstan’s total LPG exports. In December and January, Russian suppliers sent trial batches of LPG to Tajikistan, and discussions are now underway for long-term supply contracts. More than 97% of Tajikistan’s LPG imports arrive by rail through two Uzbek border crossings: Bekabad, which supplies the northern regions, and Kudukli, which serves the southern and central regions, including Dushanbe. At the same time, European imports of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) have increased despite EU efforts to reduce reliance on Russian fossil fuels. According to The Guardian, data from Rystad Energy shows that European ports received 17.8 million tonnes of Russian LNG in 2024, over 2 million tonnes more than the previous year. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan has officially banned the export of gasoline and diesel fuel by road and rail. The decision, effective January 29, 2025, is outlined in amendments to the joint order “On Some Issues of Export of Oil Products from the Territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan.” The restriction was approved by the Minister of Energy, the Chairman of the National Security Committee (KNB), and the Ministers of Finance and Internal Affairs, as previously reported by The Times of Central Asia.

The Price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Falls Below Production Costs in Kazakhstan

In a report on March 5th, Almasadam Satkaliev, Kazakhstan’s Minister of Energy, stated that in 2023 consumption of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) by the country’s domestic market rose to 2.2 million tons; an increase of 400 thousand tons (or 28%) compared to 2022. Cheaper than gasoline, LPG is understandably the fuel of choice for vehicle owners and a sharp hike in the cost of LPG was met with nationwide objection. Mass protests staged in the western Kazakh town of Zhanaozen in January 2022 soon spread across the country and turned violent in the cities of Almaty and Astana. According to the energy minister, the current maximum wholesale price for LPG established by the state is lower than its production cost. While production varies from 60 thousand to 70 thousand tenge per ton, the wholesale price for manufacturing plants is set at 40,320 tenge/ton excluding VAT. “Due to the unprofitability of liquefied petroleum gas production, manufacturers are running at a loss and are unable to invest in either the maintenance or modernization of their plants,” stated the minister. The price of LPG in Kazakhstan, between 54-86 tenge per litre depending on the region, is the lowest among former Soviet states. For comparison the price per litre in Russia is equivalent to 165 tenge; in Kyrgyzstan, 159 tenge; in Azerbaijan, 171 tenge, and in Tajikistan, 273 tenge. To meet the immediate demands of the country's vehicle owners, a formal agreement has been made between the Ministry of Energy and Tengizchevroil for the monthly supply of 20 thousand tons of LPG. The national company QazaqGaz and shareholders of the North Caspian project are also poised to sign an agreement for the supply of up to 700 tons of LPG per annum from the Kashagan oilfield by the end of this year.