OMV AG (OMV.VI) and its partners in the Nabucco gas pipeline are in talks with Turkmenistan and Royal Dutch Shell PLC's (RDSB.LN) Iraqi operation to secure gas supply, the company's executives said Friday.
Speaking to reporters at an OMV event, head of gas and power Werner Auli said Shell is in talks to supply gas to Nabucco from its Iraqi project.
He said Shell is also discussing a proposal for possible connections between the international pipeline and the Iraqi gas network.
OMV is one of six consortium partners planning to build the EUR7.9 billion, 3,300-kilometer pipeline, designed to bring 30 billion cubic meters of natural gas a year from the Caspian Sea and the Middle East to Europe.
In an interview with Dow Jones Newswires, OMV Chief Executive Wolfgang Ruttenstorfer said Shell is working to promote Iraqi gas exports.
Auli also said OMV and its partners are "hoping to convince the president" of Turkmenistan to sign a contract to supply Nabucco, and are also hoping to secure exploration and production licences in the Central Asian country.
The Nabucco consortium is also in talks with BP PLC (BP) to get gas from its Shah Deniz field in Azerbaijan, he said. "It looks very promising," Auli said.