Czech Republic Says It’s Ready To Stop Importing Russian Oil

The issue concerns supplies via the Druzhba pipeline through Belarus.

The Czech Republic is ready to stop importing Russian crude oil via the Druzhba pipeline and replace it with supplies via the Transalpine Pipeline (TAL), which was specially modernized for this purpose, said Prime Minister Petr Fiala. “This is a decisive moment for the Czech Republic, because Russia can no longer blackmail us [with energy supplies],” Fiala said.

The TAL pipeline connects the port city of Trieste in northeastern Italy, where oil tankers arrive, with Germany, through which oil is delivered to the Czech Republic via the Mero Pipeline. After the modernization, the TAL's capacity for the Czech Republic was doubled to 8 million tons of oil per year. Certification has not yet been completed, but the republic can already count on supplies via the pipeline in the event of any interruptions in supplies via Druzhba, Fiala noted.

In early December, oil pumping to the Czech Republic via Druzhba was stopped. Transneft then stated that the pipeline was operating normally on Russian territory. Deliveries were resumed two days later, on December 6.

The Druzhba pipeline runs from Almetyevsk to Mazyr in Belarus, after which it splits into two branches. The southern branch goes to Ukraine, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Croatia, and the northern branch goes to Belarus, Poland and Germany. Oil pumping from Russia via the northern branch was stopped due to EU sanctions. Kazakh oil is transported to Europe via this section.

In the spring of 2023, Fiala reported that the Czech oil company Mero and the Italian concern TAL had signed an agreement to expand the capacity of the Transalpine oil pipeline to replace deliveries via Druzhba. The modernization of the oil pipeline was estimated at 1.2-1.6 billion crowns (about $51-68 million).

In June 2023, the European Union imposed an embargo on the supply of Russian oil and oil products, but this did not affect the fuel supplied via the southern branch of the Druzhba pipeline. A temporary exception to the EU ban is valid until June 2025. During this time, countries receiving Russian oil must provide alternative routes for the delivery of this type of raw material.

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