Kazakhstan’s state-owned shipping company Kazmortransflot is planning to order new Aframax tankers to expand its joint venture with Abu Dhabi’s AD Ports Group. The two parties are already advancing container ship orders for their “Caspian Integrated Maritime Solutions” project.
According to Trend News Agency citing a statement from its state-owned parent company KazMunayGas: “The company also plans to expand its tanker fleet by adding new Aframax vessels.”
Kazmortransflot currently operates 15 vessels, including two Aframax tankers built in 2009 and 2011 respectively, four small tankers, as well as dry cargo ships, heavy-lift vessels, and offshore vessels.
As Kazakhstan’s largest shipowner, the company reported record-high oil and container transportation volumes last year: total oil shipments reached 13.2 million tons, up from 10.8 million tons in 2023. “This growth was driven by increased oil transportation from the Tengiz and Karazhanbas oil fields via the Caspian Sea, along with rising hydrocarbon shipments through the Black Sea.” On the Aktau-Baku route, the company transported 55,000 TEU of containers.
Kazmortransflot and AD Ports Group stated that the two new container ships will have a capacity of 500 TEU each, larger than the average vessel currently operating in the Caspian region.
The two companies established their joint venture in 2022. Last November, they announced a joint $35 million investment to acquire two 7,000-dwt tankers – the “Liwa” (formerly “Maaike”) and “Taraz” (formerly “Linda”) – from Damen Shipyards, both built in 2018.
