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Chlorides content in Ust-Luga to not exceed 3.5 ppm this week — Russian energy ministry

"The expected oil quality in the port of Ust-Luga will be within the range of 1.6-3.5 ppm for this indicator in the period from August 20 to 26, 2019," the statement reads

MOSCOW, August 12. /TASS/. The quality of oil in terms of the content of organic chlorides in the port of Ust-Luga amounts to 2.6 ppm (parts per million), Russia’s Energy Ministry said in a statement on Monday. The content of organic chlorides will not exceed 3.5 ppm this week, the Ministry reported.

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Contaminated oil from Druzhba pipeline largely localized in Russia — Transneft

"The expected oil quality in the port of Ust-Luga will be within the range of 1.6-3.5 ppm for this indicator in the period from August 20 to 26, 2019. The Energy Ministry will continue oil quality monitoring in the port of Ust-Luga with the weekly update on the official website," the statement reads.

According to the updated technical regulation of the Eurasian Economic Union on safety of oil prepared for carriage and/or use, effective from July 1 of this year, the organic chlorides content should not be above 6 ppm.

Druzhba Pipeline update

The Druzhba oil pipeline provides supplies of oil to Belarusian refineries and its transit to Europe through Belarus, Poland and Ukraine.

In mid-April, Belneftekhim reported a sharp deterioration in the quality of the Russian oil running through the pipeline. As a result, several countries stopped receiving and refining the Russian oil. The contaminant source was revealed at the Samara-Unecha section. Transneft said that the Russian oil in the Druzhba pipeline was deliberately contaminated. Russia’s Investigative Committee claimed that the contaminated oil was loaded into the Druzhba oil pipeline in order to conceal multiple oil thefts.

Supplies of on-spec oil to Belarus resumed in early May.

Minsk and Moscow negotiated an action plan on substitution of Russian off-spec oil in Belarus and on extra feedstock deliveries to Belarusian refineries. The Belarusian part of the Druzhba oil pipeline has been fully cleared of contaminated oil by August 8, one week ahead of schedule.

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