Lukoil, Transneft in talks on petroleum products pipeline from Nizhny Novgorod to Moscow
DAVOS. Jan 23 (Interfax) - Lukoil is in talks with pipeline monopoly Transneft on a project to construct a petroleum products pipeline from Nizhny Novgorod to the Moscow region, the private oil company's President Vagit Alekperov said at a press conference during the World Economic Forum on Wednesday.
He expressed hope that the Russian government will issue an order to develop the petroleum products pipeline system in Russia.
The general topic of building petroleum products pipelines will be raised at a meeting of the commission for the development of the fuel and energy complex with Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich.
"I hope that we will again focus attention on this matter at Dvorkovich's commission so that there will be an order, so that we can resume and actualize the program for developing petroleum products pipelines," Alekperov said.
At present, it would be economically unwise to independently build petroleum products pipelines. In order to construct them, either a consortium needs to be established or state budget funds need to be allocated, he said.
Alekperov did not rule out a fuel shortage occurring in the Moscow area.
"We feel that a shortage not just of gasoline, but also of aviation fuel, could emerge on the Moscow market, because today junctions are not coping with the quantities of fuel necessary to provide for Moscow airports," he said.
As reported, Lukoil plans to build a petroleum products pipeline, capacity 2 million tonnes, from its Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez refinery in the Nizhny Novgorod region to Moscow. Alekperov said the pipeline could reduce logistics costs, which account for 10% of the price of fuel - Lukoil currently ships fuel from the Nizhny Novgorod region by rail. He said the 500-kilometer pipeline might cost $500 million to build over five-to-seven years. The petroleum products pipeline is expected to be able to handle 2 million tonnes of gasoline a year, with aviation kerosene and diesel fuel deliveries possibly being raised to 3 million tonnes.
