The Czech Republic has found an Italian replacement for the Russian Druzhba pipeline.

Czech pipeline operator Mero has reached an agreement with its shareholders to expand the Transalpine Oil Pipeline (TAL), Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala announced. They want to complete the project in 2024, and the agreement will be signed by the end of May.

Previously, Fiala said that the pipeline’s modernization will increase its capacity to 7-8 million tons of oil per year, which meets the country’s overall needs. The cost of the work, he said, is 1.2-1.6 billion crowns (from $55M to $75M).

The project is being implemented to reduce dependence on the Russian Druzhba oil pipeline. The TAL’s capacity is about 43 million tons of oil per year, and the capacity of its offshoot IKL is 10 million tons per year.