The Junda oil refinery has re-opened in the city of Kara-Balta, about 100 km west of Bishkek.
Zhongda China Petrol Company’s Junda oil refinery resumed operation after a four-year shutdown from February 2020 to March 2024.
Late in March this year, the refinery completed a major overhaul and now plans to reach its full annual capacity of processing 800,000 tons of crude oil by the end of this year, creating about 400 new jobs.
Until 2020, the Junda refinery produced various types of gasoline, diesel fuel, fuel oil, and liquefied gas for the domestic market, but for a number of reasons, it ceased operations in February 2020.
Speaking at the opening ceremony on August 30, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov emphasized that the Junda refinery project, aimed at strengthening the strategic partnership between China and Kyrgyzstan, has ambitious goals. The president announced the future modernization of the refinery with investments of about $450 million.
The refinery will produce premium K4 and K5 gasoline fully meeting modern requirements.
It will also produce bitumen, a much-needed material for the country’s large-scale road construction.
Today, Kyrgyzstan’s local capacity for refining crude oil and producing motor fuel covers about 5% of domestic demand, with the rest imported from Russia.
During President Japarov’s visit to oil-rich Azerbaijan earlier this year, negotiations were held with the Azeri state oil company, SOCAR, on Azerbaijani oil supplies to the Junda refinery.
Kyrgyz Energy Minister Taalaibek Ibrayev commented at the time that the Junda oil refinery requires more than 1 million tons of crude oil per year for refining, adding that SOCAR was ready to cooperate.
Photo: president.kg
