Soyuz Gas Pipeline

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Soyuz Gas Pipeline, also called the Orenburg Western Border Gas Pipeline, (Russian: Газопровод «Союз»; also Газопровод «Оренбург - Западная граница СССР») is an mothballed gas pipeline running from Russia through Kazakhstan to Ukraine.

Location

The Soyuz gas pipeline passes through the territory of Russia, Kazakhstan and Ukraine along the route: Orenburg - Uralsk - Alexandrov Gai - "Sokhranovka" (border of Russia and Ukraine) - Kremenchug - Dolina - Uzhgorod.

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Project details

• Operator: Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine LCC (GTSOU), Gazprom, Intergas Central Asia
• Owner: Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine LCC (GTSOU), Gazprom, Qazaqgaz
• Parent company: JSC Mahistralni Gazoprovody Ukrainy (MGU), Gazprom, Samruk-Kazyna SWF JSC
• Capacity: 25.2 bcm/y
• Length: 2,750 km
• Diameter: 1,420 mm / 55.91 in
• Status: Mothballed
• Start Year: 1980
• Cost:
• Financing:
• Associated infrastructure: Orenburg-Novopskov Gas Pipeline

Background

The Soyuz gas pipeline is a part of the pipeline network also referred to as the "Brotherhood" gas pipeline network. This network includes gas pipelines that deliver gas from the gas fields in Russia to the western border of Ukraine, which is then transported through Slovakia into Western Europe. Besides the Soyuz Gas Pipeline, this network includes the Torzhok-Smolensk-Mazyr-Dolyna Gas Pipeline, the Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhgorod Gas Pipeline, and the Progress Gas Pipeline.

The pipeline passes through the territory of Russia, Kazakhstan and Ukraine along the following route: Orenburg - Uralsk - Aleksandrov Gaj - Frolovo - gas metering station Pisarevka or gas metering station Sokhranovka (border of Russia and Ukraine) - Kremenchuk (Poltava Oblast, Ukraine) - Dolyna (Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, Ukraine) - Uzhgorod. The Soyuz Pipeline, originating from the Orenburg gas field, enters Ukraine east of Novopskov through the Sokhranovka or Pisarevka gas metering station in Russia. Up to Novopskov, it runs parallel to the Orenburg–Novopskov pipeline. From there, the Soyuz pipeline runs westward until Bar, Ukraine, where it joins the corridor of the Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhgorod pipeline and the Progress Pipeline. The pipeline terminates in Ukraine at the Uzhhorod gas metering and pumping station. On the western border of Ukraine, gas is then delivered to Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia. From Slovakia, gas is delivered to other countries of Central and Western Europe. In Dolyna, Ukraine the pipeline connects to the Northern Lights Gas Pipeline Ivatsevichy-Kobryn-Dolyna branch.

In December of 2015, financing was secured for the reconstruction of the Bar compressor station. The project was expected to increase the pipeline's capacity by 85 million cubic meters per day and increase its lifespan by 15 years. It was being financed by Ferrostaal Industrieanlagen GmbH and Deutsche Bank. Combined, they were planning to provide $70.72 million USD of the required $83.2 million USD. The rest was planned to be provided by the government of Ukraine.

Intergas Central Asia conducted repair works on the pipeline's Kazakh segment of 279-370 km in 2020 and increased the capacity from 78 million cubic meters per day to 105.4 million cubic meters per day.

Implications of the Russian invasion

In May 20222, Ukrainian network operator GTSOU declared that it could no longer handle the Sokhranovka supply, justified by its loss of control over the gas infrastructure in Luhansk region. Immediately afterwards, Gazprom closed the main Soyuz pipeline and hence transit through the Sokhranovka hub. Denying GTSOU’s allegations, Gazprom refused to reroute the flow towards the Soudja entry point. Initially, the contract between Russia and Ukraine provided for a volume of 40 bcm/year transiting through Soudja and Sokhranivka. Subsequently, Ukraine’s public gas supplier, Naftogaz, accused Gazprom of not fulfilling the “ship-or-pay” contract, an allegation that was rejected by the Russian company. However, in 2022, the volume transiting through Ukraine has been estimated at only 20.3 bcm.

Ukraine will not reopen the Sokhranovka gas transit route (Soyuz gas pipeline) from Russia to Europe until Kyiv obtains full control over its pipeline system, the head of operator GTSOU told Reuters on May 12, 2022 following Russian invasion of Ukraine in February, 2022.

Ukrainian gas transportation company declared force majeure citing gas theft by Russia-backed separatists and halted flows via Sokhranovka, which account for almost a third of the gas Russia sends across Ukraine to Europe. The pipeline runs through Ukraine's Luhansk region, part of which has been under the control of Russia-backed separatists since 2014.

As of August 2023, there has not been any changes to the status of the pipeline.

Change of the operator & owner in gas transmission system of Ukraine

In 2019 the personnel of the Branch “Gas TSO of Ukraine” the division of JSC Ukrtransgaz, responsible for natural gas transportation, was transferred to LLC Gas TSO of Ukraine and under the Service Level Agreement concluded between LLC Gas TSO of Ukraine and JSC Ukrtransgaz, LLC Gas TSO of Ukraine provided services covering all types of operation, maintenance and repair works to ensure safe and efficient operation of the main GTS facilities.

In the same year pursuant to Art. 24 of the Law of Ukraine “On the Natural Gas Market”, the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities (hereinafter – NEURC) adopted a final decision supporting certification of LLC Gas TSO of Ukraine according to the ISO model, and also issued the license for the right to carry out activities for the transmission of natural gas allowing the company to perform its functions starting with January 1, 2020 (Resolution of 24.12.2019 No.3011).

In 2020 LLC Gas TSO of Ukraine was fully separated from Naftogaz Group and 100% stake in the authorized capital was transferred to the state-owned company JSC Mahistralni Gazoprovody Ukrainy (MGU). JSC MGU owns 100% of the shares of LLC Gas TSO of Ukraine.

Accidents

In January of 2016, an underground gas leak caused an explosion near the Hungarian border in Transcarpathia. The explosion led to the loss of 809,000 cubic meters of gas. Repairs cost $300,000 USD.

In February 2021, there was an accident at this pipeline.

Comecon Cooperation

Construction of the pipeline was held up by the USSR as an example of Comecon Cooperation between the USSR and its satellite republics, with a plan for countries to take an equal share in the financing and construction of the line. Part of the payment for future delivers of fuel to Eastern Europe would be participation of workers from those countries in energy projects in the Soviet Union," wrote Jonathan Stern in Soviet Natural Gas In The World Economy. "In any event, the experiment does not seem to have worked particularly well on account of the attitudes of some of the East Europeans towards such exercises in fraternal cooperation."

Related GEM.wiki articles

Existing Pipelines in Russia