Russia’s Energy Ministry has put the preliminary cost of the planned South Stream gas pipeline, a major new route to Southern Europe, at US$20 billion, a ministry spokeswoman said yesterday. The route, which will be jointly built by Russian gas export monopoly Gazprom and Italy’s ENI, is expected to take 30 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas per year and rival the US and EU-backed Nabucco pipeline to Southern Europe.
The ministry spokeswoman quoted Energy Minister Sergey Shmatko as saying the project could cost $20 billion at his meeting with Italy’s minister for economic development, Claudio Scajola, earlier this week in Moscow. ENI’s CEO Paolo Scaroni said last year South Stream may cost at least 10 billion euros ($15.73 billion). “(The $20 billion figure) is one of the preliminary estimates we have, based on a preliminary feasibility study.
The cost is likely to be changed in future,” said the spokeswoman. Gazprom’s spokesman declined to comment and said it would issue a final estimate of South Stream’s cost after its feasibility study is concluded by the end of next year. The pipeline, which is expected to be commissioned in 2013, is to travel 900 kilometers under the Black Sea to Bulgaria and then split into two onshore routes – to Italy and Central Europe.
(By KATHIMERINI, 07/31/2008)