Eastern Siberia–Pacific Ocean oil pipeline
The Eastern Siberia - Pacific Ocean oil pipeline ( ESPO pipeline ) is a pipeline for export of Russian oil in the Pacific region (Japan, China, Korea). The pipeline was built and operated by Transneft.
Formation
Construction of the pipeline began in 2006. The inauguration took place on 1 January 2011 in a ceremony in the presence of Vladimir Putin instead. The pipeline is still under construction. In the previous stage, it provides 15 million tons of oil a year to China Daqing, the Chinese center of the oil industry and oil production (see oilfields of Daqing ), increasing the capacity to 30 million tonnes a year, however, is possible and planned for the future. This section of the pipeline is 2757 km long, but when completed, the pipeline will reach a length of 4857 km and use it to transport Russian oil to South Korea and Japan also to an oil terminal in Nakhodka, until completion of the transport is carried out to the terminal by web. These countries hope to gain a lower dependence on the Middle East, with Russia, in turn, seeks less dependence on Europe.
Costs
The estimated cost for the construction of the pipeline will be U.S. $ 25 billion. China has granted Russia for loans of 25 billion U.S. $ on favorable terms. After the year 2015, a supply of natural gas is planned through the pipeline and Russia increased its coal supplies to China from 12 to 20 million tonnes per year, China granted another loan in the amount of $ 6 billion. Until the completion of the pipeline transportation of crude oil found so far by train instead and was much more expensive and the annual capacity was limited to 9 million tons of oil.
Expansion
On 25 December 2012, a completion / completion to Kosmino and thus a capacity expansion to 30 million tonnes of oil per year, has been put into operation.
According to Nikolai Tokarev, head of the pipeline operator Transneft ( Transneft, according to site ) go 35 % of the oil in Kosmino by oil tankers in the U.S., 30 % to Japan, 28 % in China.
The capacity is to be increased in the future to 50 million tonnes.