The Czech Republic has fully ended its reliance on Russian oil for the first time, Prime Minister Petr Fiala announced on Thursday, following the completion of upgrades to the Transalpine (TAL) pipeline. The TAL pipeline, which carries crude from Italy's Trieste port through Germany and into the Czech Republic via the IKL link, now provides up to 8 million tons annually—enough to cover the country's entire oil demand. Previously, Czech refiner Orlen Unipetrol sourced half of its oil from Russia via the Druzhba pipeline, which had been in use for nearly 60 years. Since Russian supplies ceased in March, the company has been drawing from state reserves and is now shifting fully to TAL-based imports. Pipeline operator MERO completed the upgrade at the end of 2023, enabling the historic transition. Attribution: Reuters Subediting: M. S. Salama