"Blue Stream" is a gas pipeline that servesensuring gas supplies from Russia to Turkey. It takes place on the bottom of the Black Sea, thereby avoiding other states. The construction of the gas pipeline contributed to the development of the hydrocarbon market and infrastructure of Turkey.
Historical reference
At the end of 1997the heads of state of Russia and Turkey signed an agreement on gas supplies. According to the document, the company Gazprom concluded a contract with the Turkish organization Botas to carry out direct supplies of natural gas to Turkey in the amount of 365 billion m3 per year by pipeline. Ensuring this volume should be established in 25 years.
In 1999the Italian company "ENI" and "Gazprom" signed a memorandum on joint cooperation and implementation of the project for the construction of the gas pipeline. The Blue Stream project was launched in late 1999, when these enterprises registered the joint venture Blue Stream Pipeline Company B.V, which currently owns the offshore section of the gas pipeline. Gazprom is the owner of the land unit.
The Blue Stream (gas pipeline) was built in June 2002, almost in 9 months.
The gas pipeline was launched in 2003. The cost of construction is estimated at 3.2 billion dollars. During the year, 2 billion cubic meters of Russian gas were delivered to Turkey.
The Blue Stream gas pipeline on the map
If you consider the location of the pipeline on a map, you can divide it into three parts:
- overland Russian;
- sea;
- overland Turkish.
The map of the Blue Stream is presented below.
The Russian part of the gas pipeline passes throughStavropol Territory from the city of Izobilnogo. Then it follows the territory of the Krasnodar Territory from. Arhipo-Osipovka to the Black Sea coast. The length of the pipeline of this part is 373 km.
The sea part runs in the south-west direction, towards Samsun, along the bottom of the Black Sea. The length of the sea part of the route is 396 km.
The overland Turkish part of the gas pipeline is the longest section (444 km). It passes from Samsun in the south-west direction to Ankara.
Specifications
"Blue Stream" is a gas pipeline, the length of which is almost 1200 km. The Russian land site passes in the mountains. The offshore part of the gas pipeline lies at a depth of almost 2100 km.
The bottom of the Black Sea has an increased contenthydrogen sulfide, so for the construction of such an environment is considered to be aggressive. This made work very difficult. To improve the reliability of the structure, corrosion-resistant steel and a polymer coating were used in the manufacture of pipes. Intellectual inserts were also used.
For the construction of a Russian site in the mountains, special tunnels were constructed, passing under the Bezymyanny and Kobyla Ranges. This technology was used for the first time in Russia. The length of the tunnels is 3.26 km.
A special role in the construction was paid toenvironmental measures. For example, along the route of the pipeline, land reclamation was carried out, and the relic forest was also preserved during the construction of tunnels under ridges.
Exploitation
Gas supplies began in February 2003. Under the contract, Gazprom was supposed to supply 2 billion cubic meters of gas to the Turkish side in 20033 of natural gas, in 2004 - already 4 billion m3. By 2010, therefore, the volume of supplies had to be increased to the maximum throughput capacity of the pipeline - 16 billion m3.
In reality, the volumes of supplies were slightly lower than planned:
- 2004 - 3.2 billion m3;
- 2005 - 5 billion m3;
- 2006 - 7.5 billion m3;
- 2007 - 9.5 billion cubic meters3.
Current state
According to the project, the maximum capacity of the pipeline -16 billion cubic meters per year. The gas buyer, Turkey, often requests gas volumes corresponding to the design capacity of the pipeline. The fact is that Iran does not always fulfill its obligations to supply gas to Turkey. In this situation, the Russian partner meets Gazprom and compensates for the shortage that has arisen. "Blue Stream" covers the peak periods of gas demand in Turkey, which are associated with seasonal cooling.
Prospects
At the moment the pipeline has 2 branches.However, for almost 10 years, the question of building a third has remained topical. The project was named Blue Stream-2. Initially, it was assumed that the new branch will be built in the period from 2010 to 2015. Nevertheless, the implementation of the project has not yet begun, it is still pending.
It is planned that Russian natural gas will bedelivered through Turkey to Israel and other Middle Eastern countries. This project is very important for Russia from an economic point of view, since fuel supplies will help to occupy key positions in the new market. Turkey is also interested in building a new gas pipeline, as it will receive revenue from the transit of raw materials.
The implementation of such an initiative is hampered bythe political situation in the region, since Israel does not yet have the opportunity to agree on the transit of gas through the territory of Syria and Lebanon. The world is embroiled in an economic crisis, so energy prices are rapidly falling. The current political situation in the Middle East also hinders the situation.
Blue Stream is a gas pipeline that isa unique hydrotechnical structure. Its construction has become a new milestone in the history of technological progress. Its main part is located on the Black Sea bottom, at a depth of almost 2 km. Such a bold project is of great importance for the Russian economy, because it has made possible the supply of natural gas to the countries of the Middle East region.
