General direction west-east (east-west) Type natural gas Commissioned 2007 | From Maracaibo, Venezuela Length 224.4 km (139.4 mi) Operator PDVSA | |
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Country Venezuela, Colombia, Panama Maximum discharge 5 billion cubic meters per year | ||
The Trans-Caribbean gas pipeline (also known as Antonio Ricaurte Gas Pipeline) is a natural gas pipeline between Venezuela and Colombia with proposed extension to Panama and probably to Nicaragua.
Contents
History
The construction started on 8 July 2006 with presence of presidents Hugo Chávez of Venezuela, Álvaro Uribe of Colombia and Martín Torrijos of Panama. It was inaugurated on 12 October 2007.
Description
The first stage of the pipeline is 224.4 kilometres (139.4 mi) long and it runs from Maracaibo in the state of Zulia in Venezuela to Puerto Ballena gas fields in La Guajira, Colombia. At the first stage, the pipeline pumps natural gas from Colombia to Venezuela. Transported gas is used by Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. for injection in its oil reservoirs to boost oil production. Natural gas is supplied by Ecopetrol and Chevron Corporation. At the second stage by 2012, the pipeline would be reversed to pump natural gas from Venezuela to Colombia and further to Panama.
The construction of the first stage cost US$467 million. Its maximum capacity is 5 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year.
Operator
The operator of the pipeline is Petróleos de Venezuela.