Kazakhstan is key to the Middle Corridor
The race to go around Russia is on and the New Silk Road has a Central Asian energy flavour
The Middle Corridor, a major new trade route from China running through Central Asia to Europe that bypasses Russia and its Northern Corridor, has been on the drawing board for decades. Now, the war in Ukraine may have finally created the incentives needed to make it happen. Energy is at the centre of the route, and Kazakhstan—a big, potential beneficiary looking to diversify its oil export routes—is moving full speed ahead to take advantage. “With Russia weakening its grip on the region, it is quite timely that [regional leaders] started discussing this again, and I think this is quite a realistic project, because if Kazakhstan builds a trans-Caspian oil pipeline, they will minimise the ris

Also in this section
1 May 2025
The NOC’s dire financial situation and maturing fields has left the authorities with little choice but to reduce crude expectations
30 April 2025
With a new board appointed to lead NNPC and moves by President Tinubu to exert control in the Delta region, there is renewed hope the country will be able to turn the corner and rebuild production to former peaks
30 April 2025
While economic weakness and the electric vehicles trend have hit oil demand growth, petrochemicals and jet fuel show more nuanced changes across the barrel
30 April 2025
The company will use methane-rich gas produced from local coal to temporarily replace lost supplies from Mozambique