Kazakhstan, China Double Joint Pipeline Capacity

Kazakhstan and China have plans to double the capacity of the joint first crude oil pipeline.

"The expansion is a key objective of our company. We plan to raise the line's current capacity from 10 million tons to 20 million tons per year," said Bakhtiyar Tokbayev, deputy director for commerce, Kazakhstan-China Pipeline LLP.

The company is a joint venture between KazTransOil JSC and the China National Oil and Gas Exploration and Development Corporation.

The Atasu-Alashankou pipeline extends from the Atasu Station in the Karaganda region in Kazakhstan to the Alashankou Metering Station in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in Northwest China, a total of 962 kilometres.

It started operations in July and has so far transported 2 million tons of crude oil to China, Tokbayev said at the Third Sino-Russo-Kazakh Oil & Gas Forum in Shanghai.

Tokbayev said his company had still to decide whether to build more pump stations to quicken the flow or build a second line. The cost factor would depend on the decision.