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Jahnatek Speaks About Plans of Alternative Oil Imports
Tuesday 29 December 2009 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, December 29 (TASR) - A day after Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary saw a looming oil crisis fade after supplier Russia resolved a dispute with Ukraine, which was seeking higher transit fees, Economy Minister Lubomir Jahnatek on Tuesday expanded on Slovakia's plans to import oil via other routes.
Jahnatek stressed the importance of linking the Druzhba pipeline with the town of Schwechat in Austria to allow oil imports from Italy's Adriatic port city of Trieste.
"This way Slovakia would be able to import no less than 3.5 million tonnes a year were some problems to occur in Russia or Ukraine," he said. The domestic industry uses up some 2.7 million tonnes of oil a year.
Austria's OMV, a leading oil and gas group, is interested in transporting 3 million tonnes of oil a year.
At issue now is whether oil transport should be routed through the Zitny Ostrov area (as part of the Druzhba-Swechat plan) or elsewhere. The ministry has tasked state-owned pipeline operator Transpetrol with calculating individual alternatives, while taking economic and engineering aspects into consideration.
Jahnatek has guaranteed that this topic will now be put up for public discussion. "We don't want to do anything that is contrary to the public interest," he said.
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