According to Polish pipeline operator PERN, a leak in the Druzhba pipeline has been discovered
Polish oil pipeline operator PERN on Tuesday evening discovered a leak in a pipe of the Druzhba oil pipeline, some 70 kilometers from Plock, which transports oil from Russia to Europe, it said in a statement on Wednesday. The causes of the leak are unknown at this time, the operator said. The pipeline’s second line, as well as other elements of PERN’s infrastructure, are functioning normally, he said.
The Druzhba pipeline, whose name means “friendship” in Russian, is one of the largest in the world. It supplies Russian oil to much of central Europe, including Germany, Poland, Belarus, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Austria. “At this point in time, all PERN departments (technical, operations, fire and environmental protection) are acting according to the algorithms intended for this type of situation,” added PERN.
A spokesman for Czech pipeline operator MERO said it had seen no change in flows into the Czech Republic. Germany’s Schwedt refinery, which supplies 90% of Berlin’s fuel, the economy ministry and the federal grid regulator could not immediately be reached for comment.