Map of Crude Oil Pipelines

In the oil sector, increasing international concern is being expressed over the threat of maritime accidents and the ensuing significant environmental damage caused by the resulting oil spills. Given the increasing density of the maritime traffic in the waters around the EU and in the enclosed Black Sea, it is of utmost importance to give a higher priority to considering, where economically and technically feasible, the alternative of transporting oil by pipelines. This is considerably safer and more environmentally friendly.

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In this context, the priority axes for crude oil pipelines, reflected in the corresponding map, are as follows:

Upgrading and enhancing the whole Druzhba pipeline, in particular across northern Europe as an alternative to increasing maritime oil transportation in the Baltic Sea, and the reversal of the Adria pipeline in Croatia and Hungary.

Extending the Odessa-Brody pipeline to Plock to link into either the Druzhba route or the existing line to the Polish Baltic Sea port of Gdansk.

Building a Constanza-Omisalj-Trieste pipeline, linking Romanian port of Constanta across to Omisalj in Croatia on to Trieste, Italy and supplying oil to the countries transited

Building a Burgas-Alexandropoulis pipeline, linking the Bulgarian Black Sea port of Burgas with the Greek Mediterranean port of Alexandropoulis. Construction of this pipeline would reduce the increasing pressure of maritime oil transport through the Bosphorus.