Chevron and KazMunaiGaz demand shares in the oil pipeline to Greece

“The American Chevron company and the Kazakh KazMunaiGaz company are interested in acquiring shares in the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline for many years,” explained to Klassa daily Plamen Rusev, former Director of the Bulgarian branch of Trans-Balkan Pipeline. The reason is that they are the owners of the oil, which will be transported via the pipeline.

Chevron is interested in the project, as the company holds a 15% stake in the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC). The KazMunaiGaz company owns another 20% in it. The capacity of the CPC had to be extended and additional quantities of oil from it to be transported via the Burgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline. "Currently, there is no need for additional quantities of oil in Europe, which slows down the expansion of the CPC. Therefore the construction of the pipeline to Greece may be temporarily suspended,” Rusev said. He added that the best solution for Bulgaria was to sell its share in the project. "By doing so, the State will not lose from the implementation of the project, but will receive the fees for land use and for oil transportation,” Rusev said.

“Bulgaria's refusal to participate in the Bourgas-Alexandroupolis project is an internal political decision related to Minister of Finance Simeon Djankov,” Rusev explained for BNR.

The transcript of the Government’s meeting reveals that the Ministry of Finance has given up the project because of the conditions of the proposed bank loan needed for its realisation. According to the financial consultant, Societe Generale, the only way for the loan to be granted is the credit to be paid by revenues from the oil pipeline. “The Russian consortium, however, did not agree because this would mean the pipe to work with high tariffs, making it uncompetitive,” Djankov explained. According to him, the credit can be borrowed, if the pipeline is controlled by the Russian Transneft Company. Transneft, together with two Russian companies, held a 51% stake in the project company.

“In such a case, Transneft will be both a lender and provider of oil and will have full control over the project. The company proposes to implement the project, but under conditions different from the already agreed,” Djankov explained.

According to Rusev, however, the company has offered to finance the pipeline at twice lower interest rates and over twice longer period and the Greek side has accepted this principle. According to the expert, the approval of the Environmental Impact Assessment of the pipeline has been delayed due to bureaucratic reasons.

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