CIRCULAR INDUSTRY 4.0 IN THE MANUFACTURING SECTOR OF KAZAKHSTAN

Abstract

The Oil and Gas (O&G) sector is one of the main industries in Kazakhstan and there are overall more than 200 oil and gas fields in Kazakhstan. The market change in the Oil and Gas (O&G) industry, effects of Covid 19 decreased demand for oil products and increased interest in alternative green and sustainable environments have increased the need for innovative, digitized and green production, as a Circular economy (CE) has successful practices in developed countries. This has attracted some researchers to investigate Industry 4.0 (I4.0) and CE in the n O&G sector. However, there is a gap among Kazakhstani researchers, regarding Circularity and digitization perspectives in O&G. Therefore, there is a need to develop a research on CE and I4.0 in the O&G sector, specifically in the upstream sector and develop the Circular O&G 4.0 framework with a guideline for improving circularity through digital tools in O&G Exploration and Production. Keywords: Circular economy, Industry 4.0, Oil and Gas industry, Upstream, Kazakhstan, Sustainability