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The Operator of Burgas-Alexandroupolis Intends to Build Two Mooring Installations Away from Shore

04.02.2010 | Oil.ru | Trans-Balkan Pipeline B.V. (TBP), the operator of the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline, finds it more feasible to build two single point mooring installations (SPM) away from shore to receive tankers at the Bulgarian port of Burgas. This is evident from materials published by the company on Thursday, reports RIA NOVOSTI.

The alternative is to build a pier near the port of Rosenets (15 kilometers from Burgas), which belongs to LUKOIL.

The operation of the Burgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline at full capacity of about 50 million tons of crude a year (MMTA) envisages the unloading of about 400 tankers in the port of Burgas (about 300 tankers at the initial capacity of 35 MMTA).

The tankers will be loaded at the CPC terminals of Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka and Sheskharis in Novorossiysk.

In the period from October 2008 to September 2009 Trans-Balkan Pipeline B.V. conducted studies and consultations with the public and authorities to compare, among other things, various oil unloading systems (regular pier or SPM).

"Given the specific social, environmental and technical aspects that occur on the Burgas section of the project, an SPM is a safer and more ecological solution than a pier. All tanker movement in relation to the Burgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline will be conducted outside the Bay, which would reduce the social impact (has to do with the visibility of the tankers from shore)", - Trans-Balkan Pipeline B.V. materials say.

The construction of the SPM and the off-shore lines will take approximately 6 months. The off-shore pipelines will be laid in trenches and covered with soil, with additional safety measures taken as necessary.

It is designed to place the two SPMs away from fairways used for regular marine traffic to and from the port of Burgas, from on-shore industrial facilities and outside environmentally vulnerable and protected areas.

The construction of a pier next to the port of Rosenets, in the view of the operator, is not as safe environmentally.

"The scenario involving a pier would lead to serious damage to the natural environment of the sea bed, which could lead to the loss of marine flora and fauna ", - the report says.

Currently there are three piers in the port of Rosenets that can receive tankers of up to 80 tons. Reconstruction of the port to allow for the use of Suezmax tankers as envisaged in the project will require extensive dredging around the port, which could take two years. Additional dredging may also be required for repair and maintenance.

Besides, the final planned pier location creates problems for existing navigation. The presence of tugs and tankers will have a detrimental effect on fishing and sailing. There will also be limited space for tanker maneuvering.

As for the cost of work, at the initial stage of design development the cost of building an SPM was similar to that of building a pier.

"At present, considering the requirement to reduce the environmental and social impact, we selected a more distant location for the SPM. Therefore the solution involving an SPM will cost several million euro more than the one with a pier ", - the TBP report states. The materials do not contain any specific numbers.

The capacity of the Burgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline, for which an intergovernmental agreement was singed in 2007, will be 35 million tons of crude oil a year with the possible expansion to 50 million tons. The cost of the project is assessed at 1.5 billion Euros. The route is laid to by-pass the Black Sea Straits through which crude oil is now taken by tankers from the Black sea.

In implementation of the project on February 6, 2008, the parties registered the company Trans-Balkan Pipeline B.V. Russia owns 51% in Trans-Balkan Pipeline B.V., 49% are shared evenly by Bulgaria and Greece.