Moscow Court Rejects Rosneft's Claim Against Pipeline Operator Over Polluted Oil - Company

Moscow Arbitration Court rejected the claim of Russia's oil giant Rosneft against Druzhba pipeline operator, Transneft, worth almost 12 billion rubles ($191 million), filed to compensate for oil pollution in 2019, Transneft President Igor Dyomin told Sputnik on Friday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd December, 2022) Moscow Arbitration Court rejected the claim of Russia's oil giant Rosneft against Druzhba pipeline operator, Transneft, worth almost 12 billion rubles ($191 million), filed to compensate for oil pollution in 2019, Transneft President Igor Dyomin told Sputnik on Friday.

"The court's ruling is out. The court clearly made the decision in favor of Transneft. Rosneft's claim was rejected. Transneft's own claim against Rosneft will be addressed separately," he said.

Rosneft filed an appeal for compensation in several currencies: 3.4 billion rubles, $121 million, 74 million Polish zloty, 48,000 Euros, and 6,000 Pounds, amounting to almost 12 billion rubles in total (at the exchange rate of May 24, the date the claim was submitted).

Rosneft's representatives have given no comments yet.

In 2019, oil exported through Druzhba pipeline was polluted by chlorides. By April 2022, Transneft had compensated affected parties approximately $170 million under a specially established extrajudicial procedure, according to the company's report. Transneft specified that Rosneft hadn't submitted any documents needed to receive the payment.

Meanwhile, Transneft itself filed a claim against Rosneft in August, demanding to recover more than 2 billion rubles due to the oil company's failure to fulfill the provisions of the contract on oil transportation and storage "in terms of payment for the provided services."

Both cases have been tried behind closed doors. The sides said that an open hearing could incur negative consequences for Russia and both companies with regard to the political situation in the world.