News: IndianOil in talks with Turkey's TAPCO

(BL 14/02/2007) Kolkata - IndianOil (IOC) is negotiating with Trans-Anatolian Pipeline Company (TAPCO) of Turkey for award of engineering as well as operation and maintenance contracts. TAPCO is laying a 550-km pipeline to transport 1.5 million barrels of crude oil a day from northern Black Sea city Samsun to the Mediterranean port city Ceyhan in Turkey. The pipeline will replace the tanker movements through the Bosphorus Straits. In MoU for stake IOC has already entered into an agreement with the existing promoters of TAPCO - ENI of Italy and Calik Enerji of Turkey - for picking up 12.5 per cent stake at an undisclosed price in the $1.5-billion pipeline project. "We are expecting to get some engineering contracts and the operation and maintenance rights for the project," an IOC official said. He, however, added that decision in this regard would be formalised once the IOC board approved the company's proposal to pick up stake in the project. IOC is expected to seek requisite board approval for participation in the project in its next meet. According to sources, representatives of TAPCO recently visited the country to take stock of IOC's abilities to handle such a large-scale cross-country pipeline. "They have expressed satisfaction at our abilities," the official said. IOC has created a network of over 10,000 km product and crude pipeline across the country. This apart the company recently forayed into LPG and natural gas pipelines in the country. The company is also looking forward to tap emerging opportunities in the natural gas pipeline sector in India. Meanwhile, steps have been taken to tap the growing overseas opportunities in the crude pipeline sector. The company has already entered into MoU with Russian oil and gas construction major Stroytransgaz in this regard and had bid for a proposed crude pipeline project in Syria.