Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct. 15 / Trend E.Ismayilov /
The commissioning of the Odessa-Brody pipeline in the direction of Belarus in the direct mode and the use of the Drujba pipeline opens up a possibility of organizing the oil supplies from the Caspian region to Poland, Sarmatia International Pipeline Company CEO Sergei Skripka told Trend over the telephone.
Earlier, Ukrainian Fuel and Energy Minister Yuriy Boyko said the test pumping of the Venezuelan oil to Belarus in direct mode via the Odessa-Brody pipeline will be implemented in late November. The volumes of the test flow will be 80,000 tons. The Cabinet adopted a protocol decision on the implementation of the test pumping of oil to the Mozor refinery using the pipelines Odessa-Brody and Drujba.
"This route for oil supplies to Belarus also enables Sarmatia to supply oil from the Caspian region to Poland, though via a longer route, but right now, without waiting for the pipeline from Brody to Adam's Gate. This route is longer for 400 kilometers compared to our planned route," Skripka added.
Skripka said Ukraine is seriously considering re-commissioning of the Odessa-Brody pipeline. This process meets the long-term plans of Ukraine and Sarmatia.
The transition to the direct use of the pipeline, of course, is linked with changing external conditions and with certain agreements, which Ukraine reached. It is also associated with the negotiations with Azerbaijan and Belarus.
"In addition, the Ukrainian oil refineries located in Brody have long awaited opportunity to buy oil from the Caspian region to refine at home. If the Odessa-Brody pipeline is used in the projected direction, these plants will have such a possibility," Skripka added.
According to Skripka, Belarus is also interested to transport by pipelines through Ukraine the oil, which it buys from Venezuela, and will probably buy from the Caspian countries. All Belarusian refineries are connected to the Drujba pipeline, Skripka said.
"There is a possibility of ensuring all Belarusian factories with Venezuelan oil, which is already available, and possibly the Caspian, as the oil will be transported through this system," he said.
Oil transportation project "Odessa-Brody" was to diversify oil supplies to Ukrainian refineries and develop transit potentialities of the country. The construction of the Odessa-Brody pipeline was completed in May 2002. Trunk has a length of 674 kilometers, pipe diameter - 1,020 mm. Capacity of the first stage of the pipeline and the terminal is 9-14 million tons per year.
Over two years since the construction of the pipeline, Ukraine unsuccessfully tried to negotiate on the transportation of Caspian oil through it in a forward direction. Not-receiving concrete proposals from the companies, the Ukrainian government authorized the use of pipeline for transporting Russian oil in the reverse direction in late June 2004.
Sarmatia was created under the project of oil transportation via the route Odessa-Brody-Gdansk-Plotsk. Azerbaijan has the role of one of the major suppliers in this route. Azerbaijan can also operate as a transit country. Azerbaijan can supply not only its oil, but oil from Central Asia, for example from Kazakhstan via this pipeline.
Participants of Sarmatia include SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan), Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation Ltd. (GOGC), Ukrainian Ukrtransnafta, Polish Przedsiebiorstwo Eksploatacji Rurociagow Naftowych Przyjazn SA and Lithuanian AB Klaipedos Nafta with equity participation of 24.75 percent for the main parties and one percent in the Lithuanian company.