LUKOIL, FIRST IN RUSSIA, PUTS INTO OPERATION A FLOATING BUNKERING STATION

Tuesday, September 18, 2001

LUKOIL has put into operation a floating bunkering station, the first of a kind in Russia, which is intended for small-sized fleet, in particular, motor-launches, yachts and small fishing boats. The station was designed against the Company's order in the Astrakhan central design office and built at the Astrakhan Shipyard.

Non-self-propelled floating bunkering station was built in the course of the implementation of the Company's program for constructing modern environmentally friendly floating bunkering stations.

The station consists of two sections. The first - energy section - incorporates an operator's room and a storehouse. The second section is intended for bunkering the small-sized fleet and is equipped with four storage tanks, which are designed for three kinds of fuel and have an overall capacity of 57.2 cubic meters, and three fuel pumps. The design of the station, its technological and environmental protection equipment fully comply with the requirements of Russian river register for preventing pollution from vessels.

LUKOIL first non-self-propelled floating bunkering station is located in Astrakhan in the Volga Delta - the area of intensive small-sized fleet navigation. Taking into account the number of small-sized motor-launches in Russia, trading in fuels from special vessels is one of the promising segments of oil product market. In 2002, it is planned to build a series of such stations and to place them in the water reservoirs of St-Petersburg, Samara and Saratov.