Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee moderated a meeting dedicated to the South Stream project.
Taking part in the meeting were Leonid Chugunov, Head of the Project Management Department, Pavel Oderov, Head of the International Business Department and Marcel Kramer, Chief Executive Officer of the South Stream project.
Pursuant to the task by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, the meeting participants discussed in details the South Stream project schedule stipulating the pipeline's maximum capacity of 63 billion cubic meters per year.
Special attention was paid to selection of contractors for the environmental impact assessment (EIA) and front-end engineering design (FEED).
Special attention was paid to the construction of onshore infrastructure for the gas pipeline to be launched in December 2012.
In addition, the meeting participants discussed the progress with the comprehensive Final Investment Decision to be adopted this November.
Background
With a view to diversify the natural gas export routes Gazprom is implementing the project for construction of a gas pipeline running under the Black Sea to the countries of Southern and Central Europe – the South Stream project.
Intergovernmental agreements were signed with Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, Greece, Slovenia, Croatia and Austria in order to implement the onshore gas pipeline section.
On September 16, 2011 the South Stream Transport AG shareholders signed the Agreement for the offshore section of the project. Pursuant to the Agreement, the stakes in the offshore gas pipeline project are distributed as follows: Gazprom – 50 per cent, Italian Eni – 20 per cent, German Wintershall Holding and French EDF – 15 per cent each.
In the third quarter of 2011 the Consolidated Feasibility Study of South Stream was finalized and included the feasibility study of the offshore section and feasibility studies of the respective gas pipelines in the host countries of Southern and Central Europe.
The Consolidated Feasibility Study contains key engineering solutions of the project including their substantiation, environmental safety assessment and environmental measures, economic efficiency evaluation including capital and operational expenditures.
On December 30, 2011 Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister of the Russian Federation authorized Gazprom to speed up the launch of the South Stream project and to start its construction in 2012.
On January 20, 2012 Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee approved a detailed action plan that would make it possible to start the South Stream gas pipeline construction in December 2012.
First supplies via the gas pipeline are planned for late 2015.
