UFA, , May 27. /TASS/. The Russian Energy Ministry believes a separate sour oil stream may be formed in 2017, Deputy Minister Kirill Molodtsov said on Friday.
"We are monitoring the situation and will implement activities of such kind if an urgent need to do so appears in 2017," the official said.
The Russian oil pipeline operator Transneft is ready to separate such a stream in 9-16 months, the official said. "It is not difficult," Molodtsov said, adding that everything depends on the oil price discount ranging from $4 to $20 per tonne, according to different estimates.
"There is no urgent process need to do so for the time being. Oil supplies in its current blend are the most proper decision," Molodtsov said.