BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 6. Kazakhstan's national KazMunayGas company hopes to reduce over 400,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from its subsidiary operations in the Atyrau region by 2031, Trend reports.
This was stated during the "Atyrau Ecological Dialogue: Ecology and Industry. Partnership for the Benefit of Society" conference held in Atyrau timed to coincide with World Environment Day.
According to the company, this reduction accounts for one-third (37 percent) of the total carbon dioxide reduction potential across the company's subsidiaries. Moreover, over the next decade, KazMunayGas aims to decrease its CO2 emissions by 1.6 million tons across the entire group.
KazMunayGas also revealed its plans to reduce fuel and energy consumption at the Atyrau Oil Refinery. Through a range of activities, including technical upgrades to furnaces and the replacement of outdated burners with modern installations, the refinery is projected to decrease emissions by 327,800 tons of CO2 between 2023 and 2027.
Additionally, a project is underway at the plant to install pontoons by 2025, aimed at reducing the release of hydrocarbon vapors into the atmosphere. This endeavor is expected to achieve an 80 percent reduction in hydrocarbon evaporation from each storage tank.
Furthermore, the plant has taken responsibility for the efficient utilization of water resources. To this end, the construction of a wastewater treatment unit is planned to be completed by the end of 2028. This project aims to reduce water intake from the Ural River by 57 percent and minimize wastewater discharge by 70 percent through the reuse of treated effluents for production needs. As a result, water extraction from the river is projected to decrease from 7 million tons per year (in 2022) to 3.9 million tons per year by 2028.
During the conference, KazMunayGas signed a memorandum of understanding with the local authorities of the Atyrau region, outlining plans for the planting of up to 10,000 trees within the territory of Atyrau over the next three years.
