Czech Republic will commence oil imports via the improved TAL pipeline in April.

The Czech Republic will boost its crude oil shipments via the expanded TAL pipeline from Italy starting in April, as announced by the Czech pipeline operator MERO on Thursday. This change comes in response to the suspension of Russian oil imports through the Druzhba pipeline, which was halted earlier this month.

At the end of last year, MERO finished upgrading the TAL pipeline, which transports oil from tankers at the Italian port of Trieste to Germany, where it connects to the IKL pipeline leading to the Czech Republic. This expansion increases the capacity available to the Czech Republic, granting the nation complete independence from Russian oil supplies.

Although flows through Druzhba were expected to continue until June, they have been stopped since early March due to payment issues linked to sanctions on Russia, according to sources. The state-owned MERO stated, "Czechia will utilize the TAL-PLUS project for the first time." They added, "Oil shipments through the western route are on the rise, thus replacing the disrupted supplies of Russian crude."

Czech refiner Orlen Unipetrol had been sourcing about half of its crude oil from Russia and the remaining half through the TAL pipeline. After the cessation of supplies through Druzhba, it has been drawing from state reserves to maintain production but is preparing to rely entirely on TAL for its oil needs due to the increased capacity.