Black Sea Petroleum, the company behind Georgia’s Kulevi oil refinery, which was recently listed in the EU’s latest Russia-related sanctions package, has again vowed to stop processing Russian crude. Separately, the company confirmed today to OC Media over the phone, that it has begun processing crude oil of Kazakh origin. The refinery was included in the EU’s 21st Russian sanctions package, passed in late July, for processing Russian crude oil, with the measures due to take effect after a six-month transition period. Shortly before the sanctions were announced, Black Sea Petroleum said it would stop refining Russian oil from August or September 2026. In a statement published over the weekend, the company said its crude oil supply diversification plan was now under way and that the refinery had begun processing crude oil from Kazakhstan at the beginning of July.