Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Oil flows in Chechnya

Russian and Chechen officials officially opened yesterday the Chechen section of an international oil pipeline seen as crucial for rebuilding the shattered economy of the breakaway Caucasus region.

The 600-mile pipeline links Azerbaijan's offshore Caspian Sea fields to Russia's Black Sea port of Novorosiisk. The Chechen section was badly damaged during a 1994-96 war between Russian troops and separatist guerrillas.

The brief ceremony came a day after the Azerbaijan International Operating Company, an $8bn consortium of world oil giants, said it had started pumping the first crude through the pipeline.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in