Kazakhstan's Launch Of Own Oil Brand KEBCO Helps Reduce Sanctions Risks - KMG

Kazakhstan's introduction of its own oil brand, KEBCO (Kazakhstan Export Blend Crude Oil), amid changes caused by rising geopolitical tensions in the world has allowed the country's exporters to minimize sanctions risks, head of Kazakh state-run oil company KazMunayGas (KMG) Magzum Mirzagaliev has said

ALMATY (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 07th March, 2023) Kazakhstan's introduction of its own oil brand, KEBCO (Kazakhstan Export Blend Crude Oil), amid changes caused by rising geopolitical tensions in the world has allowed the country's exporters to minimize sanctions risks, head of Kazakh state-run oil company KazMunayGas (KMG) Magzum Mirzagaliev has said.

"Last year we faced a situation where the bid-ask spread (discount) between dated Urals and Brent oil grades reached $30-40 per barrel. Historically, the spread was about $1.53 to $1.23 per barrel. That is, for seemingly high oil prices, the real profitability of Kazakh subsoil users from selling oil was much lower," Mirzagaliev said at the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston, the United States, on Monday, as quoted in a company press release out Tuesday.

Mirzagaliev noted that the KEBCO's introduction in June 2022 "allowed minimizing risks for Kazakh oil and gas companies, and today KEBCO oil quotations show a stable positive dynamics.

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"The market discount between dated KEBCO and Brent oil grades is about $3 per barrel," according to the KMG head.

In June 2022, KMG reported that Kazakh oil companies began to indicate KEBCO as its name when drawing up documents for oil export to emphasize the Kazakh origin of raw materials. Previously, Kazakh oil transported to the world markets through the Transneft system was sold under the Russian Urals brand.

KMG is Kazakhstan's leading vertically integrated oil and gas company. KMG manages assets across the entire production cycle from hydrocarbon exploration and production to transportation, refining and specialized services.