BTC Co, a pipeline company, has started filling the Turkish section of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline with technical oil of Azeri Light brand. Part of the pipeline stretching out from the Second pumping station (PST-2) in Turkey to the third pumping station (PST-3) started to get filled with oil last week, BP, BTC Co operator, told Trend.
BTC Co has temporarily suspended filling the pipeline in Turkey with the technical oil due to the testing of the part of BTC pipe between PST-2 and PST-3 in February. Following the successful completion of test this section the oil was transported back in the direction of the third pumping station, BP said. BTC pipeline is now being filled with oil at the speed of 175,000 barrels per day.
Along with four pumping stations, a number of intermediary pumping stations exits in Turkey.
After the pipeline section between PST-2 and PST-3 will be filled with oil BTC pipeline will contain more than 6 million barrels of technical oil of Azeri Light brand.
Similar operations will be conducted between PST-3 and PST-4. First tanker carrying Azerbaijani oil will be unloaded in the Ceyhan port this spring, BP concluded.
BTC pipeline linefill with the technical oil started in May 2005. More than 5.5 million barrels of oil was pumped into the pipeline as of 1 March 2006. 10 million barrels of oil is needed to fill the pipeline completely.