Russia's Transneft settles part of dirty oil claims with Total

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian oil pipeline monopoly Transneft <TRNF_p.MM> said on Monday it has partially settled claims with French energy major Total <TOTF.PA> over contaminated oil that flooded the Soviet-built Druzhba pipeline in April 2019.

Transneft said the agreement covers oil supplied by Russian company Surgutneftegaz <SNGS.MM> to Total, including to Germany, where Total owns the Leuna refinery.

Transneft said the compensation does not exceed the limit of $15 per barrel that its board had set for payments related to the contamination, but it did not say how much it had paid Total.

The company added that it was close to a settlement with Total in relation to supplies by Russia's Gazprom Neft <SIBN.MM>.

Up to 5 million tonnes of tainted Russian oil was contaminated en route to central Europe via the Druzhba pipeline. Organic chlorides were found in Urals crude export flows in late April last year.

In June, Total declared a force majeure on the production of jet fuel at its Leuna refinery in Germany following the supply of contaminated crude from Russia.

Transneft has already compensated Hungary's MOL <MOLB.BU> and all the Kazakh companies affected by crude oil contamination in its pipelines.

Talks with Rosneft <ROSN.MM>, Russia's top oil producer which also has refineries in Germany, were the most difficult. Rosneft and Transneft have publicly attacked each other over the contamination incident.

(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin and Olesya Astakhova; Editing by Hugh Lawson)