Page 8 - FSUOGM Week 08 2021

FSUOGM PIPELINES & TRANSPORT FSUOGM

Belarus to start Russian fuel

transhipments in March

BELARUS BELARUS will start using Russian ports to Belarus exported some 1.157mn tonnes
deliver its oil products to market in March, with of gasoline and 1.834mn tonnes of diesel in
Belarus used to send its a total of 9.8mn tonnes of supplies expected to the first nine months of 2020, according to the
supplies to market via be exported via these routes by 2023, under an Belarusian state statistics service. But Belaru-
Lithuania. intergovernmental agreement signed on Febru- sian fuel production was disrupted last year
ary 19. because of a dispute with Russia over crude oil
Belarus has traditionally sent its oil products and gas supplies. That dispute was resolved after
overseas via the Lithuanian port of Klaipeda, Lukashenko was forced to reach out to Moscow
but deliveries were halted in mid-December, for political support following mass protests
two months after Lithuania imposed sanctions against his re-election.
against the Belarusian government. The meas- Belarus and Russia are still at odds over com-
ures were a response to Belarus’ presidential pensation for the so-called dirty oil crisis of 2019,
elections in August, which resulted in President however, when millions of barrels of Russian oil
Alexander Lukashenko winning a landslide vic- in the Druzhba pipeline system were found to
tory but which were widely condemned as nei- have been contaminated with organic chlorides.
ther free nor fair. These chemicals caused damage to Belarusian
Under its agreement with Moscow, Minsk refining equipment.
will use Russia’s ports on the Baltic Sea, includ- Russia’s ambassador to Belarus said on Feb-
ing Ust-Luga and St Petersburg, to export its fuel ruary 10 that Russia had fully compensated Bela-
oil, gasoline, diesel and gasoil. Total supplies rus for damages caused by the crisis. But Belarus’
are anticipated to reach 3.5mn tonnes in 2021, state energy firm Belneftekhim responded say-
3.2mn tonnes in 2022 and 3.1mn tonnes in 2023. ing it had not received full compensation yet. No
“The agreement was signed for three years, such payments have been received from Russian
but in fact it is unlimited, since it provides for state oil supplier Rosneft, a company spokes-
automatic prolongation,” Russian Transport man was quoted as saying by the Interfax news
Minister Vitaly Saveliev said in a statement. agency. ™

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 08 24•February•2021