The company, which pipes oil from theCaspian to Novorossiysk on Russia’s Black Sea coast, said it shipped 12.93mtonnes of CPC Blend to 30 April, against 10.35m tons in the same period of 2013.

April’s figure alone was 3.48m tonnes, upfrom 2.65m tonnes the year before.

The Chevron-led group includesRussian pipeline company Transneft, ExxonMobil, Shell and Lukoil.