Caspi Bitum produced over 78,000 tonnes of bitumen in 2 months after upgradeThe Caspi Bitum plant has produced over 78,000 tonnes of bitumen in the two months since completing its modernization, the press service of the national company KazMunayGas (KMG) reported."In the two months since its launch after modernization, the plant has already processed over 216,000 tonnes of oil and produced more than 78,000 tonnes of bitumen, supplying the country's road builders with high-quality products," the press service statement said.As previously reported, the ceremony to launch the upgraded Caspi Bitum LLP plant took place in Aktau in early May. The modernization increased the plant's annual oil processing capacity from 1 million to 1.5 million tonnes, and its bitumen production capacity from 500,000 to 750,000 tonnes.The modernization work began in November 2024. The general contractor was CITIC Construction, a subsidiary of China's CITIC Group. Capital investment in the project totaled 36.1 billion tenge.Originally, the project was planned for completion by the end of 2024, but the launch was later postponed to early 2025 – before the start of the road construction season. The modernization of Caspi Bitum was actually completed in late April.Caspi Bitum LLP was established on a parity basis by Kazakhstan's national oil and gas operator, KazMunayGas, and CITIC Group. The plant has been operational since December 2013. The enterprise uses crude oil supplied by Karazhanbasmunai JSC as its feedstock.In October 2023, during Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's visit to China, an agreement was signed between KMG and CITIC Group for the implementation of the Caspi Bitum expansion project in 2024-2025. This project aims to fully supply the domestic Kazakh market with locally produced bitumen.In January 2024, KMG also signed a bitumen supply agreement with the national road management operator, KazAutoZhol JSC.Besides the Aktau plant, bitumen in Kazakhstan is produced by the Pavlodar Oil Chemistry Refinery and two other private plants. Overall, the country produces approximately 1 million tonnes of road bitumen annually. (ICE ALMATY)

Fonte notizia: INTERFAX