International Legal Frameworks for Cross-Border Pipelines

There are various multilateral and bilateral instruments specifically concluded for or dealing with different aspects of cross-border petroleum transport and transit via pipelines.
They contain in many respects similar provisions dealing with the issues of jurisdiction, pipeline ownership, operation, tariffs and taxation, and so forth.

There have been several attempts to develop regional framework arrangements for cross-border pipelines and transit.
One such agreement was concluded in 1996 by the former republics of the Soviet Union in order to attain a common approach to the transit regime of natural gas.
The European Commission (EC) under its Interstate Oil and Gas Transport to Europe (INOGATE) programme attempted to establish a regional legal framework for transport of hydrocarbons in the former Soviet countries but without Russia and bypassing it.

These are multilateral legal instruments which address various aspects of cross-border energy transmission infrastructure, including pipelines.
Among the most important such instruments is the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which establishes the legal regime of submarine pipelines and rules on transit of land-locked States.
The 1994 Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) governs international energy cooperation and, in particular, transit of energy materials and products.
The ECT was launched as a pan-European cooperative framework but is gradually expanding to other regions
Countries of West Africa adopted the 2003 Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Energy Protocol, which is practically identical to the ECT.