Eilat Ashkelon Pipeline Company

Eilat Ashkelon Pipeline Company
Company typePublic
Founded1968
Headquarters
Ashkelon, 78101
,
Israel
Area served
Israel
Websitewww.eapc.co.il

The Eilat Ashkelon Pipeline Company (Hebrew: חברת קו צינור אילת אשקלון בע"מ (קצא”א), also known as the Europe Asia Pipeline Company and by the acronym EAPC) operates several crude petroleum and refined petroleum products pipelines in Israel, most notably the Eilat Ashkelon Pipeline – which transports crude oil across southern Israel, between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. The EAPC also operates two maritime oil terminals as well as oil storage depots in the country.

The company was originally formed in 1968 as a 50/50% joint venture between Israel and Iran (during the Shah's rule) to transport crude oil shipped from Iran to Europe.[1][2] However, Israel nationalized the company following the 1979 Iranian Revolution and the subsequent severing of relations between the two countries. In 2015, a Swiss court ordered Israel to pay Iran $1.1 billion in compensation for this, which it refused to do, arguing that this was prohibited by its Trading with the Enemy Act.[3]

The services of the EAPC are: transporting crude oil and refined products, long term storage, crude oil blending, processing of liquefied petroleum gas, fuel oil, distillates and gas.

Eilat Ashkelon Pipeline Company is one of Israel's most secretive companies. According to the Financial Times, "EAPC has operated since its founding under a blanket state decree that shrouds its affairs in secrecy. Israel says the decree was issued for reasons relating to national security."[4]

  1. ^ Ammann, Daniel (2009). The King of Oil: The Secret Lives of Marc Rich. New York: St. Martin‘s Press. ISBN 0-312-57074-0.
  2. ^ Bialer, Uri. Fuel Bridge across the Middle East—Israel, Iran, and the Eilat-Ashkelon Oil Pipeline. In: Israel Studies, Vol 12, No 3 (Fall 2007)
  3. ^ "Report: Swiss Court Orders Israel to Pay Iran $1.1 Billion in Oil Pipeline Dispute". Haaretz. May 20, 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  4. ^ Reed, John (26 January 2016). "Israel: Oil secrets to spill". Financial Times. Retrieved 20 May 2022.