The Pipeline Strengthening
Odessa-Brody pipeline will operate in the straight direction next year. President Viktor Yushchenko signed the respective documents Friday. In the government and Ukrtransnafta, they are deliberating on attracting a new operator, while the analysts expect this move of Kiev to accelerate Russia’s decision for building a pipeline bypassing Ukraine.
By his ruling of August 15, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko brought into effect the July 28 resolution of the National Security Council, whereby Odessa-Brody pipeline will operate in the project, i.e. the straight, direction, by this year-end.
Constructed in 2003, the pipeline was projected to deliver to Europe the oil of Kazakhstan via Georgia and Ukraine, but the demand wasn’t sufficient and, since 2005, the pipeline has been operating in the reverse direction, pumping Russia’s oil to Odessa.
Ukrtransnafta and Russia’s Transneft sealed an agreement in late 2006 for the annual delivery of at least 9 million tons of oil from Russia to Odessa. The amount was 9.6 million tons past year and TNK-BP and LUKOIL were the key shippers (40 percent each). The April-December export schedule sets forth the shipment of 7.2 million tons, of which Russia’s oil accounts for a third and the oil of Kazakhstan covers the remainder.
Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Poland and Lithuania agreed past October to build Brody-Plotsk-Gdansk pipeline, and Sarmatia consortium that was set up for the purpose intends to complete the project by 2011.
Transneft CEO Nikolay Tokarev said in June that, if implemented, the Ukrainian project would overlap southern branch of Druzhba pipeline and Russia will have to deliver 25 million tons in another direction and construct a bypassing facility.
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All the Article in Russian as of Aug. 18, 2008
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