Belarus initiated implementation of the next phase of the roadmap on substitution of contaminated Russian oil by on-spec one in the Druzhba main oil pipeline and started cleanup of the Unecha-Polotsk pipeline. "According to Polotsktransneft Druzhba, driving-out of Russian oil contaminated with chlorinated organic and its substitution of clean oil in the Unecha-Polotsk pipeline started today, on June 21," the company reports.

MINSK, June 21. /TASS/. Belneftekhim stated that tainted oil in the Druzhba pipeline on the territory of Belarus is anticipated to be cleared up by the middle of August 2019, the company said on Friday. "The Druzhba pipeline on Belarusian territory is forecasted to be fully cleaned up by mid-August 2019," the company reported. "Today there are about 620,000 tonnes of substandard oil on Belarusian territory," Belneftekhim added.

Oil is driven from Unecha to Polotsk and then over the Surgut-Polotsk pipeline by reverse to Nevel. Oil driving-out from the first stage of the oil pipeline is expected to end on July 3, followed by driving contaminated oil out of the second stage of the Unecha-Polotsk oil pipeline, which will continue until the end of July. "The closing phase in the north direction, oil driving out of the Belarusian segment of the Surgut-Polotsk oil pipeline, will continue until August 15," Belneftekhim said.

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 states 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 said that 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.

On June 3, the talks on settlement of the issue around supplies of contaminated oil were held in Moscow, after which Russia’s Deputy Energy Minister Pavel Sorokin told reporters that all participants reached a common understanding of the principles for calculation of compensations for supplies of off-spec oil.