Central Asia Sees 20% Surge in Russian Gas Imports

Russian gas supplies to Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan surged by 20 per cent in 2025, highlighting Central Asia’s growing demand for energy amid rapid economic growth.

The increase was announced by Gazprom Chairman Alexey Miller during a meeting summarizing the company’s preliminary results for the year, The Caspian Post reports via Uzbek media.

He noted that the expansion is tied to earlier agreements, including a document signed on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum, which предусматривает higher gas deliveries to Kazakhstan in 2025-2026. Supplies to Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan also rose over the year.

“By the end of the year, gas supplies to these three countries increased by 20 per cent. These are very substantial figures,” Miller said.

Gazprom plans to continue scaling up exports to Central Asia, with talks underway with Kazakhstan on building new gas transmission infrastructure and supplying fuel to the country’s north-eastern regions. The focus, Miller stressed, is on long-term cooperation in line with rising regional demand.

Despite having their own energy resources, Central Asian economies are growing fast and require additional gas volumes, he noted. “In the medium term, Russian gas will be in very high demand here,” Miller added, pointing to ongoing preparatory work alongside rapidly rising supplies.

Meanwhile, Uzbekistan and Gazprom have signed a two-year contract under which Russia will supply 9 million cubic meters of gas per day, or about 2.8 billion cubic meters annually. Deliveries via Kazakhstan began in October 2023, assisting to cover seasonal shortages during the autumn-winter period.

Tashkent is also considering higher import volumes and aims to deepen long-term cooperation with Gazprom. As part of these plans, Uzbekistan intends to modernize its main gas transmission system between 2024 and 2030. The first phase of the program, valued at $500 million, is expected to boost import capacity to 32 million cubic meters per day.