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CPC guarantees efficient and environmentally safe movement of crude oil

The Project is designed to increase the trunk pipeline capacity

Fire Drill at Kropotkinskaya PS

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On 19 March Caspian Pipeline Consortium and Krasnodar Krai General Department, RF Emergencies Ministry conducted a joint fire drill in the Kavkazsky District, Krasnodar Krai.

According to the drill scenario, as a result of fire safety breach, crude oil got ignited in the 50000 cu m tank at Kropotkinskaya PS, while one of the two automatic tank irrigation systems failed.

Emergency response was first undertaken by the PS resources and joined later by the fire teams from the Kropotkin and Armavir major fire stations, which arrived to help. All in all, more than 80 people and 20 special vehicles were involved.

In order to prevent spread of fire, initial actions were aimed at cooling the tank on fire and those nearby. The burning tank was extinguished using powerful water/foam monitors “DOMINATOR-9000” available with the PS fire team.

The “burning” tank was extinguished within one and a half hours.

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The drill streamlined the interaction between the CPC and Emergencies Ministry ER resources in case of an emergency at the Consortium oil pipeline system facilities and checked the stationary and mobile fire-fighting and external fire water supply systems available at the PS.

The PS site accommodates two 2500 m3 fire water tanks, which ensure 100% water supply backup in case of an emergency. Besides, outside the PS site there are evaporation ponds, which, if necessary, can be a backup source of water. The current stock of foam generating agent makes it possible to carry out three foam attacks to extinguish a burning tank.

As concluded by CPC-R Western Region Manager Sergey Potryasov and Head of Fire-Fighting and Emergency-Rescue Section, Krasnodar Krai General Department, RF Emergencies Ministry Konstantin Ratiani, the drill, upon the whole, was successful.

Annually, CPC conducts at least 10 large-scale oil spill and fire response drills. Being a part of the Company HSE policy, they are intended to ensure readiness of the CPC and its contractors ER resources for emergency response in the areas crossed by the trunk oil pipeline and to reduce, as much as possible, impact of the Consortium activities upon the ecosystem.

CPC pipeline system is one of the largest investment projects in the energy industry with participation of foreign capital on the CIS territory. The length of the pipeline connecting the oil fields in Western Kazakhstan with the Marine Terminal near Novorossiysk is 1,511 km. CPC Marine Terminal is equipped with single point moorings which allow for safe tanker lifting at a considerable distance from the shore, also when the weather conditions are unfavorable.

CPC Shareholders: Russian Federation (represented by Transneft – 24% and CPC Company – 7 %) – 31%; Republic of Kazakhstan (represented by KazMunayGaz – 19% and Kazakhstan Pipeline Ventures LLC – 1.75%) – 20.75%; Chevron Caspian Pipeline Consortium Company - 15%, LUKARCO B.V. – 12.5%, Mobil Caspian Pipeline Company – 7.5%, Rosneft-Shell Caspian Ventures Limited – 7.5%, BG Overseas Holding Limited - 2%, Eni International N.A. N.V. - 2% и Oryx Caspian Pipeline LLC – 1.75%.