"Polotsktransneft Druzhba" has filed a complaint with the Supreme Court of Latvia regarding the decision on disputed oil.
19/01/20120 views
19 January, Minsk /Anna Kot - BELTA/. Polotsktransneft Druzhba OJSC has filed an appeal with the Civil Cases Chamber of the Supreme Court of Latvia against the decision of the Latgale District Court concerning disputed oil in Latvian oil pipelines. This was reported to a BELTA correspondent by the Belarusian joint-stock company.
"Due to the absence of procedural deadlines for case consideration in Latvian legislation, it is processed on a first-come, first-served basis. It is expected that the date for considering the appeal will be set in a year to a year and a half," Polotsktransneft Druzhba OJSC clarified.
The Belarusian joint-stock company disagrees with the decision of the Latgale District Court of 9 December 2011, which rejected the enterprise's claims for recognition of ownership and possession rights to 110 thousand tonnes of technological oil in the main oil pipelines located in Latvia, and for the recovery of damages from LatRosTrans Ltd. caused by the displacement of 40 thousand tonnes of technological oil from the Polotsk-Ventspils section of the main oil pipeline. The disputed oil is located in two oil pipelines in Latvia: Polotsk-Ventspils and Polotsk-Biržai-Mažeikiai.
As the Belarusian side has appealed the decision of the Latgale Court, it cannot currently enter into force. Thus, the ban imposed on LatRosTrans at the end of 2010, prohibiting it from taking actions aimed at draining and moving technological oil from the Polotsk-Ventspils oil pipeline in Latvia, remains in effect.
The case between Polotsktransneft Druzhba and LatRosTrans was considered on its merits in November 2011, after repeated postponements of the hearing date, including due to counterclaims from the Latvian-Russian company. In general, the case between Polotsktransneft Druzhba and LatRosTrans has been considered in Latvia since December 2010.
On 16 November 2010, LatRosTrans Ltd. issued an official statement announcing its intention to begin displacing technological oil from its section of the Polotsk-Ventspils oil pipeline. The company declared its ownership rights to the technological oil and its "legal rights" to extract it from the pipeline. The company unilaterally terminated the lease agreement with the representative office of Novopolotsk Oil Transport Enterprise "Druzhba" (currently Polotsktransneft Druzhba OJSC) in Latvia, thereby restricting its access to the Ventspils reception and dispatch point. On 25 November, LatRosTrans Ltd. began draining the oil.
Commenting on the actions of the Latvian-Russian company, Belneftekhim concern reported that it possesses documents confirming the ownership rights of the Belarusian enterprise to technological oil, signed, among others, by the Latvian side, and sees no legal grounds for disputing this right. Furthermore, the concern's specialists expressed the opinion that the displacement of oil from the pipeline and its filling with a mixture of gases would make it impossible to use the Polotsk-Ventspils section of the pipeline for pumping hydrocarbon raw materials.
In December 2010, the Daugavpils Court (Latvia) accepted the claim of the "Druzhba" enterprise against "LatRosTrans" Ltd. for the recognition of property rights and the prohibition of the use of movable property, and subsequently imposed an arrest on the technological oil. Thus, the Latvian-Russian company was prohibited from taking actions aimed at draining and moving technological oil from the Polotsk-Ventspils pipeline within the territory of Latvia.
"Polotsktransneft Druzhba" OJSC is the legal successor of the Novopolotsk Republican Unitary Enterprise for Oil Transportation (NRUPTN) "Druzhba", which was transformed into "Polotsktransneft Druzhba" OJSC at the end of 2010. The main task of the joint-stock company is the transportation of Russian oil from the West Siberian region, Tatarstan, and the Volga region to Belarus ("Naftan" OJSC). The pipelines operated by the organization also allow for the transit transportation of oil to the Baltic countries.
"LatRosTrans" Ltd. is a Latvian-Russian joint venture, in which "Ventspils Nafta" JSC owns 66% and "Transnefteprodukt" AK OJSC owns 34% of the charter capital. The enterprise ensures the transportation of oil and petroleum products through main pipelines within the territory of Latvia. The length of "LatRosTrans" main pipelines exceeds 700 km.-0-
BELTA