ASTANA (Reuters) – Kazakh oil can help ensure the Czech Republic’s energy security after it stopped importing Russian crude, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said on a visit to the Central Asian country.
“We need to boost our own energy security and your (oil) could become a key factor in this,” he told a briefing after meeting Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Monday.
“Kazakhstan is a very important oil supplier to the Czech Republic, we believe there is huge scope for cooperation, as we are moving away from Russian oil,” said Fiala who gave no detail about the potential increase in Kazakh oil purchases.
Kazakhstan, Russia’s southern neighbour, ships crude to Europe via pipelines most of which cross Russia, although it has this year significantly boosted shipments via alternative routes such as the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline.
(Reporting by Tamara Vaal; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Alexander Smith)
