By eliminating the need to sail crude oil tankers around the southern tip of South America, the seven-year deal will cut about 30 days off the time it currently takes BP to move Angolan crude from the Atlantic Ocean to US West Coast refineries.
The project, if implemented, would require reversal of the flow of crude oil through the 130-km Trans-Panama Pipeline, and modernizing it. The work on the pipeline could take around two years. If the project goes ahead, BP will acquire 5m barrels of storage and commit to pipeline shipments of 65,000brl/d.