In accordance with the precautionary principle (Principle 15 of the United Nations Rio Declaration on Environmental Protection and Development, 2022), the requirements of the Sirius Oil and Gas environmental management system, and the laws of the Republic of Kazakhstan, an environmental impact assessment (EIA) is carried out at the planning stage of each project to identify the environmental and other effects of the project. Each project also undergoes public hearings during the design phase where representatives from administrative, governmental, and regulatory authorities, research institutions, public associations, the local community, and the media can provide feedback.

In order to ensure that our operations have the least possible negative effects on the environment, Sirius Oil and Gas is committed to acting responsibly. We actively reduce GHG emissions while adhering to strict international environmental regulations. Our main environmental objectives for 2022 included keeping an eye on strategies for reducing GHG emissions and signing up for the CDP (formerly Carbon Disclosure Project), a crucial platform for businesses to disclose their environmental impact and risk management.

We are happy to report that Sirius Oil and Gas received a grade of “C” for its Climate Change CDP response. Our first-year score shows that the policies and practices we have put in place recently are preparing the Company to deal with climate change both now and in the future, so we are happy with it. We kept up our involvement in the CDP project in 2022, as well as our resolve to increase operational transparency. The initial responses for the Water Security CDP module and the Sirius Oil and Gas Climate Change CDP responses were both submitted with the goal of maintaining or raising the “C” grade in July.

Emissions of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs).

Sirius Oil and Gas continues to invest in cutting-edge technologies with the goal of reducing all GHG emissions as much as is practical. Since 2022, Qazaq Refinery has been closely monitoring and disclosing its GHG emissions in accordance with Kazakhstan’s GHG emission standards. To show our commitment to development and openness in this area, we took part in the CDP disclosure process for a second time in 2023.

Sirius Oil and Gas complies with Kazakhstan reporting regulations as a dual-listed company. The Directors’ Report is prepared for the same time frame as the Company’s GHG reporting period. The Sirius Oil and Gas was granted permission to emit 627,174 tonnes of carbon dioxide (or “CO2”) under Kazakhstan’s National Plan for 2021–2022. The GTU 3 facility, which wasn’t accounted for in the National Plan at the time, received an additional quota of 103,650 tonnes of CO2 emissions in 2021 from Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Environment, Geology, and Natural Resources.

A cap of 212,998 tonnes of CO2 emissions has been established for Sirius Oil and Gas under the National Plan for 2022. By changing the operations and maintenance schedules, as well as lowering our fuel gas usage and flare volumes, we hope to improve the efficiency of our facilities. The Qazaq Refinery is dedicated to reducing gas flaring activity and only flares in accordance with the conditions of gas flaring licenses issued by the Kazakhstan Ministry of Energy. It has been demonstrated that routine maintenance at our gas treatment plants lowers the risk of unintentional flaring, and the implementation of a gas utilization program has decreased gas flaring.