BTC pipeline capacity to be enlarged by year-end
Operations to expand the capacity of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline are to be completed by the end of 2008, while construction works will be over in September 2008, the Trend new agency reported citing sources close to the project. The pipeline's capacity will be increased from the designed capacity of 1m to 1.2m barrels of oil a day, which will cost $69m. At this point, the pipeline is carrying over 800,000 barrels of oil a day, and by the end of the year it will be pumping 1m barrels. Azerbaijan's light oil has been carried to the global market via the BTC pipeline since April 2007.