Romanian state-owned gas pipeline operator Transgaz Medias plans to invest between EUR12 million and EUR14 million to finalize the Romanian segment of Arad-Szeged natural gas pipeline, news agency Mediafax reported Wednesday.
"The total cost will be around EUR35 million, given that we have already finalized 36.7 kilometers of the pipe, worth a total EUR20 million. We plan to invest a further EUR12 million-14 million in finalizing the 62-kilometer-long pipe," Transgaz general manager Ioan Rusu said.
Transgaz and Hungarian MOL Nyrt.'s (MOL.BU) division FGSZ Natural Gas Transmission, signed Tuesday in Arad an agreement to connect the two transportation systems through the Arad-Szeged pipeline.
The natural gas pipeline, which is seen at about 110 kilometers long, aims at bringing gas from the North Sea through Germany, Austria and Hungary into the Romanian territory. Works are estimated to be finalized by 2010.
Transgaz operates 11,000 kilometers of pipelines and has about 4,700 employees. It is also part of the group led by Austria's OMV AG (OMV.VI), which is interested in investing in the Nabucco pipeline project. This project aims to supply natural gas from the Caspian Sea to Central Europe through Turkey and Romania, bypassing Russia.
At 1335 GMT, Transgaz shares on the Bucharest Stock Exchange were up 0.78% on the day to RON205.5 a share