First crude oil cargo will be exported from the Baltic Pipeline System (BPS-2) oil terminal based in Ust-Luga on March 23, 2012, the pipeline operator Transneft said. Three days later the terminal will load the oil cargo to the second tanker.
Previously, PortNews had reported the launch of the BPS-2 marine component had been postponed from November 2011 to the first quarter of 2012 as the liquid bulk complex berthing facilities were not competed at the time to handle large-tonnage tankers. In July, the works at the terminal were ceased due to detected defects in berthing front of the oil terminals.
The facility Phase 1 capacity is 30 million tons of oil a year, of the second phase (from Dec. 2013) – up to 38 million tons.
The project Baltic Pipeline System-2 is being implemented in line with the Russian Government’s order (November 26, 2008). Transneft has constructed the 1000 km pipeline of capacity of 38 million tons of crude oil a year (the first phase - 30m tons), five pumping stations (PS), reconstructed existing pumping stations - "Unecha" and "Andreapol," and completed Ust-Luga Oil Depot with tank farm of 8 tanks of capacity of 50000 cbm each. The BPS-2 first phase commissioning is scheduled for Dec. 2011.
The pipeline network runs on the territory of Bryansk, Smolensk, Tver, Novgorod and Leningrad regions of Russia.
Moscow-based Transneft is the state-owned Russian company responsible for the national oil pipelines. Transneft manages the largest oil pipeline system in the world, with a total network length of nearly 50,000 km. The company transports about 93% of the oil extracted in Russia.