Kazakhstan plans to cut its oil exports by around 2% this year to 71 million tonnes, its energy ministry told Reuters, mainly at the expense of China, amid a production decline.
This is down from 72.5 million tonnes Kazakhstan exported overseas in 2018.
Kazakhstan plans to reduce its own output to 89.5 million tonnes in 2019 from 90.3 million tonnes last year, due in part to planned maintenance shutdowns at its three largest oil fields.
Its key exporting route is the Caspian Pipeline from western Kazakhstan to the Black Sea port of Novorossiisk. Supplies via that route are set to remain broadly unchanged this year.
Kazakhstan will slash its exports to China via the Atasu-Alashankou pipeline to 0.5 million tonnes from 1.38 million tonnes in 2018, the energy ministry said.
It will also completely halt supplying Russia's Orenburg refinery. Last year oil supplies there from Kazakhstan stood at almost 0.5 million tonnes.