Total of 114,000 tonnes of diesel fuel supplied from Hungary via Samara-Western Direction pipeline in 2022 - Ukrtransnafta

MOSCOW. Jan 9 (Interfax) - Ukrtransnafta, the operator of Ukraine's oil transport system, has listed the launch of the Samara-Western Direction oil products pipeline in reverse mode to supply diesel fuel from Hungary to Ukraine among its major achievements in 2022.

"This made it possible to support the fuel market of Ukraine at a time of crisis and ensure the availability of fuel for more than 2.5 million car owners. A total of 114,000 tonnes of diesel fuel were shipped via this oil products pipeline this year [in 2022]," Ukrainian media outlets said, citing Ukrtransnafta's social media post December 30.

The pipeline was built back in Soviet times to supply diesel fuel from Russia and Belarus to cover Ukraine's internal needs and for its transit to Europe, including Hungary. The pipeline's design capacity is 3.5 million tonnes a year.

The Ukrainian section of the Samara-Western Direction oil products pipeline had belonged to Rovno-based Prykarpatzakhidtrans LLC for a long time, but was returned to state ownership in 2021 following litigation. The winner of the competition to manage the pipeline was Ukrtransnafta, which received all necessary documents for operating the Ukrainian section in September 2021 and confirmed its readiness to restore the pipeline's operations.