SOCAR Takes Over Operations of BTC Oil Pipeline From BP

SOCAR has officially assumed operatorship of the 1,768-kilometer Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline from BP, marking a major operational transition for one of the world's key Caspian crude export routes.

(Reuters) — Operatorship of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline has transferred from BP to SOCAR Midstream Operations effective on July 1, BTC Co said.

• SOCAR Midstream Operations is a wholly owned subsidiary of Azerbaijan's state energy company SOCAR. The transfer covers BTC pipeline sections across Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey.
• It also includes management of BTC pipeline activities and common activities related to both the BTC and South Caucasus Pipeline systems, excluding facilities inside the Sangachal terminal.
• BP will remain operator of the Sangachal terminal, as well as the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli and Shah Deniz fields and other upstream projects in the Caspian.
• BTC Co said its shareholding structure remained unchanged.
• The 1,768-km pipeline has capacity of 1 million barrels per day and has carried more than 4.7 billion barrels, or about 630 million tonnes, of crude oil to world markets since operations began in 2006.
• BTC mainly carries Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli crude and Shah Deniz condensate from Azerbaijan, as well as other Caspian regional crude and condensate from Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and SOCAR volumes produced in Azerbaijan.