OREANDA-NEWS. December 4, 2012. Over 380 km (which is about 80% of the total length) of Polar Region – Purpe oil pipeline shall be mounted on supports above the ground at the area of ever-frost, said Oleg Kozlov, the Head of a "Polar Region – Purpe" investment project. "While building the first part of the pipeline, 64 km of 132 km total length shall be mounted above the ground. About 170 km of 205 km total length shall be mounted the same way while building the second part. And as for the third part of 152 km total length conserns, exploration and investigation works have been just finished, and the project is being prepared now. It is likely the pipe will be mounted over the ground in whole", O.Kozlov said. The total length of the whole oil pipeline shall amount 490 km.

TRANSNEFT, which is responsible for building the oil pipeline, clarified, that while projecting the pipeline, two ways of laying were in consideration: under the ground and over the ground. The pipe shall be mounted over the ground at the areas of ever-frost. The Company has never used such a method of building of trunk oil pipelines before. The Company noticed that there are few examples in the world when oil pipelines are laid above the ground, the Vankor and the Trans-Alaska pipelines are among them.

O.Kozlov reported that the maximum height of the pipe above the ground is 4 meters 20 centimeters, the minimum one is 40 centimeters. A series of ecological requirements shall be obeyed while laying the pipeline. For instance in places of mass migration of deer, the relevant sectors of the pipeline will be laid at a higher height. "There are many argues that deer will be afraid of the pipe and shall not pass under it. But Alaska’s experience has already shown that it doesn’t hinder them", said the Head of the "Polar Region - Purpe" project.

Moreover, he noticed that oil from the northern oil fields is of increased viscosity, that is why the oil shall be heated up to 60 Grad Celsius while transportation. To solve the problem, stations of oil heating will be built at the route. According to TRANSNEFT, there will be built seven stations, two of such points will be positioned in the first part of the pipeline (at the 419th and 358th kilometers of the pipeline). "At that, to avoid the heated pipe’s influence to the environment, it will be covered with an isolation coat. The pipe will have a thermal isolation coat of 75 mm to avoid heating of soil, and 100 mm at the areas of mounting above the ground", O.Kozlov said. For safety of the grounds, special thermal stabilizers will be mounted inside the piles at the areas of over-ground construction.

Vladimir Trapeznikov, the Head of the “Polar Region – Purpe” project in “Transneft’stroy” (the general contractor) reported that his Company plans to finish the first part of the project by May 2014. For the present moment, more than 500 workers and 300 items of equipment are involved into building of the pipeline. According to V.Trapeznikov, for the moment over 23 km of the pipe were laid under the ground, and the first 420 meters of the pipe were mounted above.

Rivkhat Aptrazakhov, the Head of the Management of trunk oil pipelienes in Noyabr'sk (”Sibnefteprovod” OJSC, an affiliated company of TRANSNEFT JSC), noticed that according to the project, a new building is planned at Purpe oil pumping station, which started working in the year 2011 under the finished project of “Purpe – Samotlor” pipeline building. A new unit for oil heating, a laboratory for the oil quality control, and expansion of an emergency operating servicing will be built at the station. A new reservoir park will be built near the station.

Building of the “Polar Region – Purpe” oil pipeline started in March 2012, some part of it will be laid inside the Arctic Circle. TRANSNEFT notices that for the first time ever the Company lays the route of the oil pipeline within such northern latitudes. The pipeline will bind the oil fields of Yamal and of north of Krasnoyarsk region with the East Siberia – Pacific Ocean oil pipeline (ESPO). The route goes through the territory of Yamal-Nenets and Khanty-Mansiysk autonomous districts. The pumping capacity of the oil pipeline will amount 45 million tons of oil per year.