OREANDA-NEWS. December 17, 2012. TRANSNEFT is interested in increase of oil dispatch to China through Koz’mino special oil marine oil port, but not through expanding of Skovorodino-Mokhe branch pipe, as Igor Katsap, Deputy Vice-President of the Company said at the congress “Oil terminal 2012” in Saint Petersburg. “We are not intend to increase the volume of pipeline deliveries”, he said and clarified that “ESPO pipeline was built to Koz’mino for the purpose to buy and to sell oil to the Asian market from exactly Koz’mino port”. I. Katsap also reminded that Chinese consumers asked for extra deliveries of oil through Skovorodino-Mokhe oil pipeline and Atasu-Alashan’kou oil pipeline in Kazakstan, in the volume of 7-8 million tons of oil. “There were very many various questions from different Chinese companies, but we can see the only prospective increase of oil deliveries to China exactly from Koz’mino port”. According to him, Chinese consumers have acquired about 30 per cent of total export volume of oil in Koz’mino port for the 10 months of the year 2012. I. Katsap believes such a dynamics shall be preserved also up to the end of the current year.

According to the Company’s representative, about 16,3 million tons of oil is to be pumped through ESPO system this year. The second line of the pipe is to be started up in the second part of December. This will allow increasing the volume of oil dispatched from Koz’mino twice – up to 30 million tons per year. I. Katsap said that building of a linear part and aboveground constructions has been almost finished by now, and testing of the section from Skovorodino to Koz’mino is being held now. According to the top manager of TRANSNEFT, the cost of building of the second sector of East Siberia – Pacific Ocean pipeline is already evaluated as much as 243 billion RUR. Moreover, I. Katsap declared the cost of the first line of ESPO pipeline – 379,8 billion RUR (including Koz’mino special marine oil port), BPS-2 – 97,8 billion RUR (including Ust’-Luga reservoir park), Purpe – Samotlor – 45,1 billion RUR, Polar Region – Purpe – 199 billion RUR, Tikhoretsk – Tuapse-2 – 24,55 billion RUR, Skovorodino – PRC border – 12,04 billion RUR. The cost of the oil pipelines is brought including VAT.

I. Katsap reported that the volume of oil pumping through TRANSNEFT system should amount 480 million tons in the year 2012. According to his report, TRANSNEFT is an instrument of a state economical policy both in the sphere of export and in the sphere of supplies to Russian consumers. The Company’s materials state that there will be transported 241 million tons of oil to domestic market, and 211,515 million tons to far-abroad countries within the year 2012.