Slovakia says Russian oil is flowing again through the Druzhba pipeline
Photo: Oil supplies via Druzhba pipeline to Slovakia have been restored (wikipedia org)
The damaged Nikolskoye station on the Druzhba oil pipeline in Russia has been repaired. Oil transportation to Slovakia is again taking place without disruptions, according to Slovakia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Denisa Saková.
The state company Transpetrol, subordinated to the Ministry of Economy, recorded a normal oil flow.
“The oil flow to Slovakia is currently standard. In the coming days, we will have more precise information about possible adjustments to this month’s delivery schedule and whether the infrastructure damage outside Slovakia will affect the total monthly delivery volume. However, I am confident that given the rapid restoration of the flow through the Druzhba pipeline, the impact will be minimal,” she said.
Backstory
On the night of August 18, Ukraine’s Defense Forces struck the Nikolskoye oil pumping station in Russia’s Tambov region. As a result of the hit, a fire broke out at the facility. Oil pumping through the main Druzhba oil pipeline was completely halted.
Due to the damage to the Nikolskoye station, oil deliveries to Slovakia and Hungary were stopped on August 18. This is already the second case of infrastructure damage in a week: on the night of August 13, a similar strike caused restrictions on the pipeline’s operation.
On August 19, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó reported that the operation of Druzhba had been restored and oil transportation to Hungary was taking place without disruptions.
According to estimates by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Ukrainian strikes on infrastructure facilities have reduced Russia’s revenues by approximately 74 billion dollars.
