"We see that new participants, our traditional partners, including German companies, are expressing their interest in the project. If participants from other countries appear, the south project will become a more pan-European project. We can also see that is Romania showing interest in it," Alexei Miller told Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
South Stream, launched in 2007, is seen as rival to the U.S.-backed Nabucco pipeline, which is supposed to transport Caspian natural gas to Austria. Nabucco project also enjoys the EU support as a strategic contribution to the Southern Gas Corridor and Europe's energy security to ease Europe's dependence on Russian gas.
