Druzbha Pipeline: agreement between Technical Supervision Office in Warsaw and the management of the pipeline upon maintanance activities and the risk assesment

Technical Supervision Office in Warsaw, as well as national media, announced that the office signed a cooperation agreement with the administrator of the pipeline Druzhba, for the maintanance activities and the risk assesment. The Druzhba pipeline is the world's longest oil pipeline and in fact one of the biggest oil pipeline networks in the world, connecting Siberia with Central Europe.

The pipeline, which started its operation in 1964, begins in Almietjevsk (Siberia), runs through Samara and Bryansk to Mozyr, where it splits into two branches:

§  the northern, running through Belarus and Poland to Leipzig, Germany

§  and the south, running through Ukraine, Slovakia, with two more branches splitting to the territory.

Druzhba Pipeline: map

The pipeline conveys crude oil from Russia - approx. 50 million tonnes a year - to domestic refineries PKN Orlen and Grupa Lotos and two refineries in Germany: PCK Schwedt and Mider Spergau. In Poland, the pipeline accounts to the network of over 2600 km and  the system of storage bases with a total capacity of approx. 3.2 million cubic meters.

The agreement between Technical Supervision Office and Druzhba pipeline management, implies the application of Risk Based Inspection Programme, to extend the period when pipeline is available for operation. It is very important operation, as the pipeline is one of the main channels of transportation of oils in central Europe. Furthermore, increasing security of transmission directly influences security of supply of the fuel translating into more constant, uninterrupted profits.

Risk Based Inspection (RBI) is a method that allows scheduling inspections based on risk analysis, which extends the period between successive shutdowns. The concept of Risk Based Inspection was created in the 90s by a team under the auspices of the American Petroleum Institute. These standards are successfully used in the chemical and petrochemical industry around the world, acting invaluable assistance in optimizing inspection processes related to the provision of technical safety petrochemical installations (Pern,2015).

Based on:

http://biznes.onet.pl/wiadomosci/energetyka/pern-i-udt-beda-wspolpracowaly-nad-bezpieczenstwem-rurociagow-i-zbiornikow/c8w6d9

http://www.pern.com.pl/pl/aktualnosci/525-pern-przyjazn-s-a-podpisalo-porozumienie-z-udt

http://www.udt.gov.pl/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1174:porozumienie-o-wspolpracy-pomiedzy-udt-i-pern-przyjazn-24-sierpnia-warszawa&catid=88:udt-aktualnosci&Itemid=555

Picture:

http://www.trud.ru/userfiles/gallery/26/b_263987b474197907cfd1c509b6ef160b.jpg

Pipeline, map: http://eurodialogue.eu/files/fckeditor_files/Druzhba-Pipeline-Map.jpg