Trans-Siberian Pipeline

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The Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhgorod pipeline (also known as the West-Siberian Pipeline, or Trans-Siberian Pipeline) is one of the Russia's main natural gas export pipelines. The Russian section of this pipeline is operated by Gazprom and the Ukrainian section is operated by UkrTransGaz.

Contents

[edit] History

The pipeline project was proposed in 1978 as a export pipeline from Yamburg gas field, but was later changed to the pipeline from Urengoy field, which was already in use. In July 1981, a consortium of German banks, led by Deutsche Bank, and the AKA Ausfuhrkredit GmnH agreed to provide 3.4 billion Deutche Mark in credits for the compressor stations. Later finance agreements were negotiated with a group of French banks and the Japanese Export-Import Bank. In 1981-1982, contracts were signed with compressors and pipes suppliers Creusot-Loire, John Brown Engineering, Nuovo Pignone, AEG-Telefunken, Mannesmann, Dresser Industries, and Japan Steel Works. Pipe-layers were bought from Caterpillar Inc. and Komatsu.[1]

The pipeline was constructed in 1982-1984. It created the transcontinental gas transportation system Western Siberia-Western Europe, for which the official inauguration ceremony took place in France.[2]

[edit] Route

The pipeline runs from Siberia's Urengoy gas field to Uzhgorod in Western Ukraine. From there, the natural gas is transported to Central and Western European countries.[3] It crosses the Russian–Ukrainian border north of Sumy. In Ukraine, it takes gas to the Uzhgorod pumping station on the Ukrainian border with Slovakia and to smaller pumping stations on the Hungarian and Romanian borders.[4] The pipeline crossed the Ural Carpathian mountains and more than 600 rivers including Ob, Volga, Don and Dnepr rivers.[5]

[edit] Technical features

The pipeline is 4,500 kilometres (2,800 mi) long and has a diameter of 56 inches (1,420 mm). It has 42 compressor stations.[1] The telecommunications and cathodic protection systems of the pipeline were installed by Alcatel of France. The pipeline utilizes 85 dual CCVT stations for telecommunications.[6]

[edit] Controversies

[edit] Disagreement among the allies

The Soviet plans to build the pipeline were considered a threat to the balance of energy trade in Europe, and were strongly opposed by the Reagan administration.[7][8][9][10][11]. The United States prevented U.S. companies from selling supplies to the Soviets for the pipeline, as part of what was also retribution against the Soviets for their policies towards Poland.[12]

America's Western European allies, however, refused to bow[13] to U.S. pressure[14] to boycott the pipeline[15] [16], insisting that contracts already signed between the Soviets and European companies needed to be honored. This lead to several European companies[17] being sanctioned[14] by the U.S. Government. The efforts by the U.S. pressure to prevent the construction of the pipeline, and it's export embargo of supplies for the pipeline (1980-1984) constituted the one of the most severe transatlantic crises of the Cold War.[17][18]

[edit] Construction controversy

The construction of the pipeline was also subject to a United States Congressional hearing investigating the use of imported Vietnamese labor from re-education camps to build the pipeline[19].

[edit] Accidents

The pipeline's first accident occured even before the commissioning the pipeline. On 15 December 1983, a fire broke out at a compressor station in Urengoy, destroying electronic monitoring devices and control panels, but no one was injured.[20]

On 7 May 2007, the pipeline exploded near the village of Luka. The explosion damaged 30 meters of the pipeline.[21] Second explosion happened on 6 December 2007 near the village of Tiahun.[22]

[edit] See also

Energy Portal

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b John Hardt; Donna L. Gold (1982-08-10). "Soviet gas pipeline: U.S. Options". Retrieved on 2008-05-30.
  2. ^ History of the gas branch. Gazprom. Retrieved on 2008-05-30.
  3. ^ "The Mineral Industry of the U.S.S.R." (1981). Bureau of Mines / Minerals yearbook area reports. 
  4. ^ Pirani, Simon (2007). Ukraine's gas sector (PDF), Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, 76. ISBN 978-1-901795-63-9. Retrieved on 2008-05-30. 
  5. ^ Afzal, Amina (2004). "The Caspian region: competition for pipeline routes". Strategic Studies XXIV (3). The Institute of Strategic Studies. 
  6. ^ I.V. Belousenko. "Energy converters prove most reliable for Gazprom", Pipeline & Gas Journal. Retrieved on 2008-05-30. 
  7. ^ http://www.margaretthatcher.org/document/B46005F232854FCC9EA465EA44FE3401.pdf
  8. ^ http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1982/60182d.htm
  9. ^ http://www.ronaldreagan.com/ussr.html
  10. ^ [Evening News: Trans-Siberian Pipeline]. CBS. 1982-02-26.
  11. ^ "U.S. asks its allies to deny to Soviet parts for pipeline", The New York Times, 1982-01-11. Retrieved on 2008-05-29. 
  12. ^ http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,952421-3,00.html
  13. ^ "U.S. asserts gap on gas pipeline bars on accord", The New York Times, 1982-02-11. Retrieved on 2008-05-29. 
  14. ^ a b "Reagan is seeking ways to moderate Poland sanctions", The New York Times, 1982-07-09. Retrieved on 2008-05-29. 
  15. ^ "Britain defying U.S. restriction in Soviet project", The New York Times, 1982-08-03. Retrieved on 2008-05-29. 
  16. ^ "France defies ban by U.S. on supplies for Soviet pipeline", The New York Times, 1982-07-23. Retrieved on 2008-05-29. 
  17. ^ a b "Regan asserts U.S. will sharply ease pipeline sanctions", The New York Times, 1982-09-02. Retrieved on 2008-05-29. 
  18. ^ "Energy Security Policy as Economic Statecraft: A Concise Historical Overviewof the Last 100 Years" (PDF) (2004). Agora Without Frontiers (4): 307-329. Institute of International Economic Relations, Greece. 
  19. ^ Human-rights consequences of the proposed trans-Siberian natural gas pipeline
  20. ^ "Incident at Urengoi", Time, 1984-01-23. Retrieved on 2008-05-30. 
  21. ^ (2007-05-07). "Ukraine Pipeline Explosion". . Overseas Security Advisory Council Retrieved on 2008-05-30.
  22. ^ "Ukrtranshaz Resumes Gas Transit To Europe Via Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhhorod Pipeline", Pro-Consulting, 2007-12-19. Retrieved on 2008-05-30.