Eastern Siberia – Pacific Ocean oil pipeline
| Eastern Siberia – Pacific Ocean oil pipeline | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Country | Russia |
| General direction | west–east |
| From | Taishet |
| Passes through | Kazachinskoye Skovorodino |
| To | Kozmino Daqing (China) |
| Runs alongside | Yakutia–Khabarovsk–Vladivostok gas pipeline |
| General information | |
| Type | oil |
| Operator | Transneft |
| Commissioned | 2009 (Phase 1) 2012 (Phase 2) |
| Technical information | |
| Length | 4,857 km (3,018 mi) |
| Maximum discharge | 1,600,000 barrels per day (~8.0×107 t/a) |
The Eastern Siberia–Pacific Ocean oil pipeline (ESPO pipeline or ESPOOP, Russian: Нефтепровод "Восточная Сибирь - Тихий океан" (ВСТО)) is a pipeline system for exporting Russian crude oil to the Asia-Pacific markets (Japan, China and Korea). The pipeline is built and operated by Russian pipeline company Transneft.
The original project of this pipeline was proposed by the Russian oil company Yukos in 2001 as an independent oil pipeline. The project proposed to build a pipeline from Angarsk, where Yukos operated a refinery, to Daqing in northern China. At the same time, Transneft proposed an alternative project to pipe oil from Taishet in Irkutsk Oblast to the Far East port Kozmino near Nakhodka. In May 2003, the Russian Government decided to combine these projects and that Transneft would be in charge of the pipeline, while Yukos would supply the oil. On 29 May 2003, Russia and China signed an agreement on construction of the pipeline. On 31 December 2004, the Russian government approved the construction of the pipeline from Taishet in East Siberia to Pervoznaya in the Pacific region.
Construction of the pipeline started in April 2006. On 4 October 2008, the section between Taishet and Talakan was launched in a reverse to pump oil from Surgutneftegas-owned Alinsky deposit. The first stage of the pipeline was completely laid in May 2009 and the whole first stage was reversed in December 2009. The terminal at Kozmino was inaugurated by Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin on 28 December 2009.
Construction of the second stage from Skovorodino to the Pacific Ocean started after launch of the first stage. In meantime, oil was transported from Skovorodino to Kozmino by railway. The second stage was inaugurated on 25 December 2012.
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