FAQ
Frequently asked questions about the Caspian Cabals investigation
What is the Caspian pipeline? How does Russia profit from the pipeline? These questions and more, answered.
What is the Caspian Cabals investigation?
The Caspian Cabals investigation reveals how Western oil giants — including Chevron Corp., ExxonMobil Corp., Shell PLC, and Italy’s Eni S.p.A. — ignored bribery risks and massive cost overruns to secure their stake in a critical Kazakhstan-Russia pipeline, then delivered substantial control of it to the Kremlin.
What is the Caspian pipeline? What is the Caspian Pipeline Consortium?
The Caspian pipeline is an oil transport route originating at the supergiant Tengiz oil field in Kazakhstan and ending at a terminal located near the Russian port of Novorossiysk on the Black Sea. The pipeline is owned by the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), whose shareholders include Western corporations such as Chevron (15%) and Exxon (7.5%), Russia’s state pipeline company (31%) and Kazakhstan’s state oil and gas company (20.75%).
What are some of the key findings of the Caspian Cabals investigation?
Western governments envisioned the Caspian pipeline as a pathway to independence from Middle Eastern oil and an instrument of post-Soviet prosperity and democracy. But Caspian Cabals shows it instead enriched Russian and Kazakh elites, leaving a trail of environmental destruction and corruption allegations in its wake.
ICIJ found the Western companies that co-own the pipeline — and operate the three oil fields that supply it — signed off on lucrative contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars to Putin cronies and a firm partially owned by the billionaire son-in-law of Kazakhstan’s former president. As part of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, the companies prioritized profits, turning a blind eye to inflated budgets, rigged bids, and payments to subcontractors for work that never happened.
In 2020, the Russian partner in the CPC, the state-owned pipeline company Transneft, orchestrated a power grab for control of the operation, sidelining the Western partners. In the aftermath, CPC awarded a Transneft subsidiary a key contract worth an additional $1 million per month and paid at least $18.9 million to the company that owns “Putin’s Palace” — an extravagant residence reportedly used by the Russian president — for a real estate lease.
CPC cut corners on safety and downplayed the severity of the 2021 oil spill at the CPC terminal on the Black Sea, significantly underreporting the amount of oil lost. The consortium ultimately paid a $98.7 million fine for environmental damage in a Russia court case. And in poverty-stricken towns near the Kazakh oil fields that feed the pipeline, ICIJ interviewed villagers still grappling with chronic illnesses that the government and the owners denied were related to the oil operations.
Since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, CPC has faced at least 20 disruptions of activity or suspensions of oil shipments. In one case, Putin’s administration allegedly sought to “scare” the West and emphasize its power over the oil market by exaggerating the length of a shutdown. Meanwhile, as war-related sanctions loomed, Kazakhstan retained a U.S. lobbying firm for a contract, now worth nearly $4 million, to help keep the pipeline sanction-free and the oil flowing.
Read more from the investigation here.
How does Russia profit from the pipeline?
CPC paid roughly $321 million in taxes to Russian authorities in 2022, including $96 million in taxes to the Russian federal government. ($321 million is the equivalent of roughly 70 new Russian tanks.) CPC also paid at least $1.4 billion in dividends to Russian state-controlled companies that own shares in the pipeline; of that amount, it has paid at least $816 million since the start of the war in Ukraine.
Transneft owns 31% of CPC shares. Caspian Cabals shows how Transneft has expanded its control over the CPC pipeline — and therefore Russia’s — over the years.
Why is the CPC pipeline critical for Kazakhstan?
Kazakhstan has Central Asia’s greatest number of proven oil reserves, making it the most resource-rich country in the Caspian region. Three of Kazakhstan’s major oil and gas fields — Tengiz, Kashagan and Karachaganak — supply the Caspian pipeline. In 2023, the CPC pipeline carried 63.5 million tons* of oil to international markets. Eighty-eight percent of that came from the Kazakh oil fields. Kazakhstan’s hydrocarbon sector generated about 20% of the country’s gross domestic product in 2022.
*All figures in Caspian Cabals related to oil production or the amount of oil carried by the CPC pipeline are in metric tons to reflect the original numbers that appear in source material.
Formerly a member of the Soviet Union, Kazakhstan is the largest country in Central Asia, and the ninth largest country in the world. Despite being rich with natural resources, the country has suffered from a persistent wealth gap.
Kazakhs were traditionally pastoral nomads, but were forced to settle during the Soviet era. This, alongside substantial Slavic migration to Kazakhstan, seeded an urban-rural divide. After the country declared independence in 1991, the oil and gas industry boomed, attracting migrant workers from neighboring countries, and regional inequality flourished. In 1993, Kazakhstan signed a contract with Chevron Corp. to exploit the Tengiz oil field, one of the world’s most-coveted reserves. Deals with other foreign investors seeking to profit from the Zhusan, Temir and Karachaganak fields soon followed.
With the energy boom Kazakhstan’s GDP skyrocketed. Kazakhstan climbed the United Nations Development Program’s Human Development Index to 67th place in 2024, which puts it on par with many other middle income countries.
Still, a lot of that wealth hasn’t trickled down. Kazakhstan is a society split between a rising urban middle class and a rural underclass. About three-fifths of Kazakh families live in rural areas. Kazakhstan’s top 1% had six times the wealth of the bottom 50% from 2010 to 2020. Wage disparities between foreign and Kazakh oil workers have fostered resentment, including in the Atyrau region, where the Tengiz and Kashagan fields are located and the CPC pipeline originates from. A foreign engineer can make up to four times more than his Kazakh counterpart. Meanwhile, on-the-ground reporting showed that Kazakhs living close to the oil fields have serious health issues.
Why isn’t the CPC pipeline sanctioned?
Authorities and lobbyists argue that while the pipeline carries some Russian oil, it is critical to Kazakhstan’s oil exports and should remain open. ICIJ’s reporting shows that Western oil firms and the Kazakh government have lobbied both U.S. officials and the European Commission to keep the oil flowing since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. They argue that shutting it down would adversely impact consumers and the Kazakh economy.
Who are ICIJ’s partners on the Caspian Cabals investigation?
The investigation was led by ICIJ — the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit newsroom and global network of reporters — in collaboration with 26 media partners including NRC, Der Spiegel, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Proekt, L’Espresso and Paper Trail Media. Seventy-seven journalists from 24 countries took part in the collaboration, which spanned two years.
Find a full list of ICIJ’s partners here.
Is Caspian Cabals based on leaked data like ICIJ’s offshore investigations, such as Cyprus Confidential and the Pandora Papers? What sources and documents are Caspian Cabals based on?
While Caspian Cabals draws on some leaked data, it began with whistleblowers. Over two years, reporters interviewed hundreds of sources, including company insiders and former executives. They combed through tens of thousands of documents: leaked internal corporate records and confidential emails, contracts, audits, land records, and court and regulatory filings.
Five whistleblowers alleged in interviews with ICIJ that Western oil companies’ dealings in Russia or Kazakhstan included improper payments in violation of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, a U.S. law that prohibits bribes to foreign officials.
How can I join an ICIJ investigation?
ICIJ welcomes new offers to collaborate with journalists and prioritizes those with a proven record of high-quality investigations. Journalists seeking to partner with ICIJ should email data@icij.org. ICIJ only partners with journalists.
How do I get in touch with ICIJ if I want to share a tip or documents?
ICIJ encourages whistleblowers to submit all forms of content that might be of public concern — documents, photos, video clips as well as story tips — and to do so securely. We accept all information that relates to potential wrongdoing by corporate, government or public service entities in any country, anywhere in the world. We do our utmost to guarantee the confidentiality of our sources.
Find out how to contact us securely here.
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