The Republic of Kazakhstan Takes Its Own Interests into Account Rather Than Those of the OPEC+ When Determining Oil Production Quotas
The Republic of Kazakhstan intends to prioritize its national interests over its commitments to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries Plus (OPEC+) when determining its oil production quotas. This was stated in an interview with Reuters by the newly appointed Minister of Energy of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Yerlan Akkenov, signaling the country’s increasing opposition in ongoing dialogue with the alliance.
According to three informed sources close to the OPEC+ group, several member countries, including one of the alliance’s key players — the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia — have expressed dissatisfaction over Kazakhstan’s repeated exceeding of agreed-upon production volumes. These concerns were made public in March 2025.
Minister Akkenov explained that it is not feasible to reduce production levels at the country’s three strategic oil fields, as operational control over these projects is carried out by international consortiums.
He emphasized that the principle of prioritizing national interests remains fundamental to the Republic of Kazakhstan’s energy policy.
As reported by Neftegaz i Kapital, in March 2025, the Republic of Kazakhstan exceeded its OPEC+ production quota by 390,000 barrels per day, reaching a total production volume of 1.82 million barrels per day. The increase in output was primarily due to the expansion of the Tengiz field, which is being developed by the American energy company Chevron, the majority owner of Tengizchevroil, the project’s operating entity.
