The South European Pipeline (also known as Lavera–Karlsruhe pipeline; ) is a

crude oil Petroleum, also known as crude oil or simply oil, is a naturally occurring, yellowish-black liquid chemical mixture found in geological formations, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. The term ''petroleum'' refers both to naturally occurring u ...

pipeline system in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It is built and operated by '' Société du pipeline sud-européen''. The system supplies crude oil to refineries in

Feyzin Feyzin () is a Communes of France, commune in the Metropolis of Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region in eastern France. History The refinery near Feyzin was the location of an Feyzin disaster, explosion and fire on January 4 ...

, Cressier,

Reichstett Reichstett (; ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. Fort Rapp is located here. Population See also * Communes of the Bas-Rhin department The following is a list of the 514 communes of the Bas-Rh ...

, and

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( ; ; ; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, third-largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, after its capital Stuttgart a ...

Technical description

The main

pipeline A pipeline is a system of Pipe (fluid conveyance), pipes for long-distance transportation of a liquid or gas, typically to a market area for consumption. The latest data from 2014 gives a total of slightly less than of pipeline in 120 countries ...

starts in

Fos-sur-Mer Fos-sur-Mer (, literally ''Fos on Sea''; Provençal: ''Fòs'') is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France. Geography Fos-sur-Mer is situated about north west of Marseille, on the Mediterranean coast, and to the w ...

(Lavera) in France and runs through

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

to Karlsruhe in Germany. It became operational in 1962–1963. As of 2011 it is inactive as the Fos–Strasbourg section is mothballed. Another pipeline runs from Fos to Strasbourg (

Oberhoffen-sur-Moder Oberhoffen-sur-Moder (; ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. Population Notable people * Sébastien Loeb, French rally and racing driver * Charles Miller, born Oberhoffen-sur-Moder, June 15, 1843, ...

), and pipeline runs from Fos to

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

(Feyzin). These pipelines became operational in 1971–1972. The system uses Twelve pumping stations. The maximum discharge of the system is 35 million

metric ton The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1,000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton in the United States to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the sh ...

s per year, although the real used annual amount is approximately 23 million metric tons per year.

Accidents

In August 2009, a breach in the pipeline led to crude oil spilling into Réserve naturelle nationale des Coussouls de Crau, a nature reserve in France.

References

{{Reflist Infrastructure completed in 1962 Oil pipelines in Germany Oil pipelines in France Oil pipelines in Switzerland TotalEnergies ExxonMobil buildings and structures BP buildings and structures Shell plc ConocoPhillips BASF France–Germany relations France–Switzerland relations Germany–Switzerland relations