A Rosneft spokesperson revealed to the Russian business daily Vedomosti in an interview that Rosneft-Shell Caspian had signed a contract with NaftaTrans for the pumping of Russian oil through the CPC, 100,000 tons per month starting this November. The crude will be coming from Rosneft's Chechen subsidiary Grozneftegaz. Later on, the oil amounts will be brought up to an annual 2 million tons, or 100 percent of Grozneftegaz' output. According to Vedomosti's interviewee, Rosneft-Shell Caspian's annual pumping quota for the CPC is 3 million tons, with 1.7 million falling on Rosneft's share.
The Rosneft spokesperson said the planned rerouting of Chechen oil was down to purely economic factors. Top-quality Chechen crude deteriorates substantially as it gets mixed up with the Urals variety in the Transneft pipeline, he explained. The Caspian Pipeline Consortium runs a quality bank, and Rosneft will therefore be getting as much money for its supplies as they are really worth.
The Caspian Pipeline Consortium started its operations in 2001; its annual carrying capacity is 28 million tons, with the maximum at 67 million. It links the Tenghiz deposit, in Kazakhstan, with a sea port terminal near Novorossiisk (the key oil-loading port in southern Russia). The Russian government owes a 24 percent stake in the consortium; 19 percent belongs to Kazakhstan's KazMunaiGaz; and 7 percent falls on Oman CPC's share. Another 50 percent in the CPC is shared between the U.S. companies Chevron Caspian Pipeline Consortium (15 percent) and Mobil Caspian Pipeline (7.5 percent); Lukarco (a joint venture between Lukoil and BP) (12.5 percent); Rosneft-Shell Caspian Ventures (7.5 percent), and several others.
