China Gives Russia Oil Supply Headache

摘要

China has told Russia it will not be able to take the earlier agreed 30 million tons per year (600,000 b/d) of crude oil via a spur from the East Siberia-Pacific Ocean (Espo) pipeline from 2018 as Beijing, which would prefer to take the barrels via tanker, is still trying to secure better supply options amid an infrastructure bottleneck. A spokesman for Russian pipeline operator Transneft toldInternational Oil Daily the Chinese said they would be able to take only some 520,000-540,000 b/d from the crossborder Skovorodino-Mohe-Daqing pipeline in 2018, leaving Russia with a headache as it will need to find alternative destinations for the barrels.