Kazakh producers of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) are facing a deficit of wagons to export their product to Europe. As Poland is demanding more and more proof of the origin of the LPG, hundreds of wagons from Kazakhstan are supposedly getting stuck on the Belarusian border.
As a result, the lack of available wagons is hindering the Kazakh oil and gas industry’s capacity to ship LPG, an industry Telegram channel says. At least a hundred wagons from Kazakhstan’s leading oil producer Tengizchevroil have stranded at the EU’s outer border.
“After introducing a ban on the import of LPG from Russia to the EU before the New Year, Kazakh liquefied gas also came under attack – hundreds of railway tankers with gas sent at the end of December 2024 cannot cross the Belarusian-Polish border”, the industry says.
Stricter customs
Reportedly, Poland has been asking for more and more proof of the origin of the LPG in the wagons. It wants to make sure that the LPG is from Kazakhstan, and not from Russia.
“The image of Kazakhstan as a country assisting Russia in circumventing EU sanctions has played a cruel joke – and EU customs authorities are seriously concerned that Russian LPG will be re-exported under the guise of Kazakh LPG”, the Kazakh industry writes. Wagons are reportedly getting stuck in Brest and Baranavichy.
The Kazakh embassy in Brussels has been reaching out to the EU to resolve the situation, but has reportedly not yet attained any success.