Russia has increased gas supplies via an alternative transit route to Kazakhstan after an explosion on a gas pipeline in the Orenburg region on Tuesday, the energy ministry said, adding that gas transit further to Ukraine was not affected, Eurasia Diary reports citing Reuters.
The Soyuz pipeline, launched in 1980, starts in Russia, crosses to Kazakhstan, returns to Russia and then runs to Ukraine where it connects with other routes which ship gas to Europe.
As a result, gas transit to Kazakhstan has been suspended and Russia has increased supplies via another route while reserve capacities were used to supply customers, the ministry said.
Repairs may take two days, the regional government added in a statement.
The Kazakh energy ministry said separately that supplies from the Orenburg gas processing plant, which imports, processes and then sends back gas from Kazakhstan’s Karachaganak gas field, were also suspended.