Kazakhstan will use artificial intelligence to protect its energy facilities from drone intrusions, Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov told a government meeting, according to infohub.kz.
Akkenzhenov said the country's energy sector has already assembled a portfolio of 45 AI-based projects. The technologies are planned for both cybersecurity — detecting threats and training specialists to respond to cyberattacks — and physical security, including the detection and suppression of unmanned aerial vehicles.
In the gas industry, AI is being used to forecast gas consumption, with data transmission accuracy reaching 86%. In the oil and gas sector, artificial intelligence is employed to analyze petroleum product turnover, with expected planning accuracy of up to 85%. In the power industry, AI is being introduced to improve industrial safety, with projections showing a reduction in workplace incidents of up to 78%.
"The total expected effect will be around 23 billion tenge per year," Akkenzhenov added.
Recall that on July 17 and 19, drones attacked the tankers ASIA and NISSOS IOS in the Black Sea, which were carrying Kazakh oil from Tengizchevroil and the Kashagan field. A fire broke out on one of the vessels but was quickly extinguished. Oil loading at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium's marine terminal was temporarily suspended, but no crude spill or crew casualties occurred. The Caspian Pipeline Consortium called the incident a deliberate terrorist attack and the "fifth act of direct aggression" against a civilian facility.
Kazakhstan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the strikes on the tankers, describing them as an unacceptable attack on the country's economic interests and an attempt to destabilize the global energy market. Kazakhstan demanded an immediate halt to the attacks, began assessing the damage, and said it was ready to seek compensation under international law.
Earlier, Kursiv wrote that on the night of June 17-18, Moscow and several Russian regions came under a massive drone attack. Former Foreign Minister Yermek Kosherbayev said whether any Kazakh citizens were among the victims.