Status: 01.12.2022 9:10 p.m
If oil imports from Russia are stopped at the beginning of 2023, the supply of crude oil in Schwedt could become scarce. In order to be prepared for this, Germany and Poland have signed a joint declaration of intent.
In the future, the PCK refinery in Schwedt should be able to obtain crude oil via the port in Gdansk. The Polish government promised the federal government this in an agreement. Concrete delivery quantities have not yet been determined. They are to be negotiated by the companies involved.
So far, there have been concerns that large capacities in the refinery could be permanently idle as soon as Russian oil imports are stopped at the turn of the year. The federal government has therefore been working for months to reach an agreement with Poland on deliveries via Danzig to Schwedt. In addition, Kazakh oil is also under discussion.
Letter of Intent signed
Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck and Polish Environment Minister Anna Moskwa have now signed a declaration of intent. “It is in the common interest of Poland and Germany to use the refineries in Gdansk, Plock, Schwedt and Leuna with as large a capacity as possible,” it says.
In the agreement, both sides pledge to increase the capacities of the existing ports and pipelines as quickly as possible. The German side makes this commitment for the port of Rostock and the Rostock-Schwedt pipeline, the Polish side for Gdansk and the pipeline through Pomerania.
“In-depth talks” on Monday
The goal is to supply the refineries in both countries with “sufficient quantities of crude oil,” said Habeck. His State Secretary Michael Kellner wants to travel to Warsaw on Monday for “in-depth talks”.
“This statement reaffirms our common will to work together to optimize oil supply conditions for Polish and German refineries connected to the Polish pipeline network,” Moskwa said, according to a press release. The agreement contributes to optimizing the conditions for fuel deliveries to customers in both countries.
Important for the supply of East Germany
The delivery route via Poland is of great importance for Schwedt and also for the supply of East Germany. So far, the PCK refinery has been supplied with Russian oil from the Druzhba pipeline, but because of the war of aggression against Ukraine, the German government plans to stop this on January 1st. The volume of the pipeline from Rostock to Schwedt is not sufficient to compensate for this.
The Mitteldeutsche refinery in Leuna also uses the Druschba pipeline. However, unlike PCK, it already has an agreement to source tanker oil via Gdańsk as a replacement.