OREANDA-NEWS. October 29, 2010. Construction of Eesti Energia's next-generation shale oil extraction plant in Ida-Viru county has entered a new phase - the installation of metal framework and equipment, including its main component, a 170-ton retort.

The plant, which will be the first to use the company's Enefit-280 processing technology, will add another 2 million barrels of liquid fuels to the current 1.4 million barrels that Eesti Energia produces annually. The plant is also expected to produce 75 million cubic meters of pyrolysis gas each year, which will be used for electricity production, the company said in a press release on Tuesday. Its output will also include high-quality EU-compliant engine fuel, expected to reduce Estonia's dependence on imported gasoline and diesel.

"In a situation where the world's major states are just becoming aware of the potential of producing liquid fuels from shale, we're already a few steps ahead. We have a working unit, the best possible technology, and very soon, a new generation of oil plant," Sandor Liive, Eesti Energia's CEO, said in the release.