Pipeliners

20.02.2009 - [Neftegaz.RU] - Sechin told that the construction is to begin as soon as China starts transferring $25 billion loan to Russian state-controlled crude producer Rosneft and pipeline operator Transneft. It is scheduled for April. Transneft head Nikolai Tokarev confirmed that the construction would begin in April saying that "the funds are available." On Tuesday Russia and China signed an intergovernmental agreement on the construction of a branch of the East Siberia-Pacific Ocean (ESPO) oil pipeline toward China and long-term Russian oil supplies. Under the agreement, Russia will supply 110 million barrels of crude annually for 20 years to China. China, in turn, will provide $25 billion in loans to Rosneft and Transneft.