The product oil pipeline project in northeastern Thailand is under construction. The progress of the project has attracted the attention of many Asian countries. As an important energy strategy project in Thailand, this project has set countless "firsts": the first use of 18-meter steel pipes in Thailand's long-distance pipeline, and the first implementation of the "inverted installation method" in Thailand for large-scale storage tank installation... Among them, " "Made in China" played an important role.

The Northeast of Thailand's refined oil pipeline project includes a new refined oil pipeline and supporting pumping stations, valve chambers and tank terminal terminals.

On a construction site on the outskirts of Khon Kaen, the central city of northeastern Thailand, 20 storage tanks were erected on the pipeline project site, which was spectacular. Approaching the evening, when the reporter came to the construction site, the afterglow of the setting sun was sprinkling on the huge tank, glowing with golden light. The shift workers hurried past, and the construction site began to be illuminated with giant lights. "Key processes must be carried out 24 hours a day to ensure the duration and quality of facilities such as oil storage tanks," said Wang Jifang, deputy project manager.

Along Highway 201 from Bangkok to the northeast, excavators and cranes are working on the side of the road. The anticorrosive steel pipes are hoisted into the trenches, welded and backfilled, and continue to extend forward. At a construction site in Nakhon Ratchasima Province, the rock drill made a huge roar. Thai engineer Tikapong told reporters, “During the construction of the line, many difficulties such as high crossing density and complex terrain have been overcome. The epidemic and the rainy season have brought more challenges to the construction. Chinese companies are fully committed and have the spirit of struggle, especially the difficult ones. The world's leading traversing technology".

The tank farm terminal of the Northeast Refined Oil Pipeline Project in Northeast Thailand will be completed in January 2022. At that time, the 20 provinces in the Northeast will be able to download refined oil directly from here, greatly shortening the delivery cycle of refined oil, saving logistics costs, and increasing the amount of gasoline transported. Maintain the stability of oil supply. By reducing the transportation of tank trucks, nearly one million tons of carbon dioxide emissions can be reduced each year.

Thailand’s Minister of Energy Supatanapon said that the project is of great significance to enhance Thailand’s energy security, improve the supply of refined oil in the northeast of Thailand, and promote local economic and social development. Thailand is willing to further strengthen its cooperation with China in the energy sector. Mutually beneficial cooperation.

29,000 tons of steel all come from China

In the control room of the substation in the terminal tank area, the reporter saw a lot of equipment with the "Huawei" logo. "The procurement team strives to be'Made in China', and the localization rate of the main machinery and equipment of the project exceeds 70%," Shan Xudong, manager of the Thailand Company of China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau and manager of the Northeast Refined Oil Project, told reporters.

Not only Huawei’s electronic equipment, but the 29,000 tons of steel required for the construction of the project all come from China’s Baosteel. At the construction site in Nakhon Ratchasima Province, the reporter saw the red cloth strips wrapped around the steel pipes very conspicuously, with the words "Made in Baosteel" written on it, and marked the production batch, specification, model, etc. of the steel pipe. "Chinese materials are very good and reach international standards," said Nippon, a quality control engineer.

The owner of the Thai pipeline project has a complete short list of suppliers, and the contractor needs to strictly follow the scope for bidding and inquiring purchases. "In order to introduce more Chinese products into Thailand and promote'Made in China', we explained to the owners the advantages of Chinese products such as high-quality performance and short delivery cycle, and supported the production and supply of steel pipes and large-scale equipment by domestic manufacturers." Shan Xudong said.

Thanks to the improvement in the quality of Chinese products and the increase in international recognition, a large number of "Made in China" products are used in the Northeast Thailand refined oil pipeline project. “We can directly take more competitive equipment prices during the project bidding stage as part of the total bid price of the project to increase the competitiveness of Chinese companies in overseas markets,” said Shan Xudong.

Project will radiate Laos

The northeastern part of Thailand is adjacent to Laos. In addition to supplying refined oil to the northeastern part of Thailand, the Northeast Refined Oil Pipeline Project will also radiate to related areas in Laos. Gasoline and diesel consumption in the domestic market of Laos relies on imports, of which Thailand's imports account for about 90%. The current way to import petroleum products from Thailand is to transport them from Bangkok to Vientiane by truck, the distance between the two places is about 700 kilometers. After the completion of the refined oil pipeline project in Northeast Thailand, the oil products will be transported to the Khon Kaen oil depot, which is only 250 kilometers away from Vientiane, which will greatly shorten the delivery cycle and save logistics costs.

Under the Belt and Road Initiative, China and Thailand have achieved fruitful results in energy cooperation. The refined oil pipeline that spans the central and northeastern regions of Thailand is not only of great significance for promoting local economic and social development, but also conducive to strengthening the interconnection between Thailand, Laos, Myanmar and other Southeast Asian countries. The project was included in the Belt and Road Special Loan and International Business Major Project Library by the China Development Bank. It is also the first energy infrastructure construction project in Thailand that China Development Bank takes the lead in organizing an international syndicated financing support. Keywords: One Belt One Road, One Belt One Road News, One Belt One Road Project, Overseas Projects

In the future, the pipeline plan will continue to extend to the northeast of Thailand and strengthen the energy interconnection of neighboring countries such as Thailand, Laos, and China. Panu, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Thailand Pipe Network Co., Ltd., said that in the eight years since the Belt and Road Initiative was put forward, cooperation in the energy sector has achieved fruitful results and brought tangible benefits to people of all countries. Chaiwa, the editor-in-chief of Thailand's "Economic Foundation", said that as the construction of the One Belt One Road enters a new stage of grounded roots and lasting development, future energy cooperation will bring more development opportunities to all parties.Editor/XuNing