Production and processing of hydrocarbons place a great responsibility on KPO with respect to environmental protection. The Company is committed to meeting high standards of sustainable development and fully supports the “transition to Green Economy” initiative announced by the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
One of the top priorities for the Company is to maintain strong production performance while minimizing environmental impact. Over the time of successful partnership, KPO achieved truly remarkable performance in terms of gas utilization rates and gas flaring reduction. In 2018, gas utilization rate at the Karachaganak field was as high as 99.94%. Such performance is in line with the best achievements of the world oil and gas industry.
The total amount of flared gas was as low as 0.06 % of the total volume of gas produced by KPO or 0.38 tonnes per thousand tonnes of produced hydrocarbons. Such emission rates as a result of flaring in 2018 is an evidence of a very high performance when compared with the worldwide industry average of 12.1 tonnes per thousand tonnes and European average of 2.9 tonnes per thousand tonnes, as stated in the 2017 International Association of Oil and Gas Producers report (IOGP).
In 2018, KPO continued implementing measures aimed at using pumps and high-pressure separators, as well as hydrocarbon-based liquids to reduce air emissions during well cleanout (development). As a result of using this equipment and materials, the volume of liquid flaring decreased by 60 k tons. The volume of gas flaring during well cleanout decreased by 40 million m3.
Reduction of gas and liquid flaring volume at wells allowed decreasing the total amount of air emissions by 55%.
KPO is making every effort to improve technologies and steadily increase capacity of Company production assets while reducing its environmental impact.
The Company applies the most advanced, and in some cases, innovative technologies for field development. For instance, the innovative scheme for raw gas high-pressure re-injection into reservoir was first developed and applied at the Karachaganak field. This scheme has proved to be very effective in increasing liquid hydrocarbon production and found to be economically beneficial for the project.
At the same time, the adverse impact of production on the environment is significantly reduced, and gas resources are saved, which, if necessary, can be extracted from formation and used in the future.
KPO will continue to contribute to the transition of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the “green economy”, securing a leading role in the oil and gas sector. The Company is committed to the principles of sustainable development and environmental protection, applying approach to environmental issues, broader than just Company does.
Starting from 2017, KPO has established an annual Environmental “Uralsk Green Forum” with the support of the West Kazakhstan Region Akimat and the Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Kazakhstan. As usual, the Forum is timed to coincide with annual celebration of the World Environment Day. Therefore, KPO suggests that the Third Environmental International Forum be held on 6 June 2019. The forum offers a unique opportunity to have an open dialogue between business and government on the issues of environmental protection, energy saving and energy efficiency enhancement. Such forums are expected to facilitate an efficient interaction between the subsurface users and RK Competent Authorities.
A number of issues related to the issue of the RK new Environmental Code is scheduled to be discussed during the third environmental forum. The development of the Environmental Code is carried out by the RK Ministry of Energy for the purpose of bringing the RK environmental legislation in line with the environmental requirements of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) as well as encouraging nature users to adopt green technologies.
