Despite the fact that the project lacks key suppliers, the EU and Turkey are preparing to sign an intergovernmental agreement on Europe's flagship Nabucco gas pipeline on Monday. The 3,300-kilometer (2,000-mile) pipeline is expected to pump as much as 31 billion cubic meters from the Caspian Sea to Austria via Turkey and the Balkans, bypassing Russia, in what is seen as a bid by the EU to wean itself off its dependency on Moscow's supplies. Europe has suffered from almost annual spats between Russia and its transit countries, specifically Ukraine, which have left some EU countries with drastically reduced oil and gas supplies, sometimes in the depths of winter. The Nabucco line is expected to be the first move away from the Russian supply line and is seen as a rival to Russia's South Stream project. That project has been developed by Russian gas giant Gazprom and Italy's Eni, which will channel Russian gas through Bulgaria to Western Europe under the Black Sea.
The 3,300-kilometer (2,000-mile) pipeline is expected to pump as much as 31 billion cubic meters from the Caspian Sea to Austria via Turkey and the Balkans, bypassing Russia, in what is seen as a bid by the EU to wean itself off its dependency on Moscow's supplies.
Europe has suffered from almost annual spats between Russia and its transit countries, specifically Ukraine, which have left some EU countries with drastically reduced oil and gas supplies, sometimes in the depths of winter.
The Nabucco line is expected to be the first move away from the Russian supply line and is seen as a rival to Russia's South Stream project. That project has been developed by Russian gas giant Gazprom and Italy's Eni, which will channel Russian gas through Bulgaria to Western Europe under the Black Sea.
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The Nabucco project, designed to cut the dependence of energy-hungry Europe on Russian gas, will reach an important milestone later today (13 July) as EU governments and Turkey are set to sign a key transit pact. "The signature will show that we are determined to make the Nabucco pipeline a reality as quickly as possible," European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said ahead of the signing ceremony, which would effectively end six months of intense negotiations on the use of the pipeline. Nabucco could supply up to 5-10% of the EU's gas demand, the European Commission says The 3,300-kilometer pipeline is expected to run between the Caspian Sea region and Austria, crossing Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary. Ankara, for its part, wanted to take 15 percent of the gas flowing through Nabucco at a discounted price for internal consumption or even for re-exportation, but was not granted this. The Nabucco's entire capacity amounts to 31 billion cubic metres of natural gas per year.
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The Nabucco project, designed to cut the dependence of energy-hungry Europe on Russian gas, will reach an important milestone later today (13 July) as EU governments and Turkey are set to sign a key transit pact.
"The signature will show that we are determined to make the Nabucco pipeline a reality as quickly as possible," European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said ahead of the signing ceremony, which would effectively end six months of intense negotiations on the use of the pipeline.
Nabucco could supply up to 5-10% of the EU's gas demand, the European Commission says
The 3,300-kilometer pipeline is expected to run between the Caspian Sea region and Austria, crossing Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary.
Ankara, for its part, wanted to take 15 percent of the gas flowing through Nabucco at a discounted price for internal consumption or even for re-exportation, but was not granted this.
The Nabucco's entire capacity amounts to 31 billion cubic metres of natural gas per year.
designed to cut the dependence of energy-hungry Europe on Russian gas,
So many assumptions encapsulated in those few words.
Europe is here defined as "energy-hungry". Try writing "energy-thrifty Europe" instead. What happens to the Nabucco "design"?
Next, it's said that Europe is dependent on gas. How about reducing the proportion of gas in the energy mix? That means investing in renewables and smart networks, not in gas pipelines. What then happens to the Nabucco "design"?
And "Russian"? If Europe has to worry about specific dependence on Russia for gas supplies, the first two points apply. Use less energy, use less gas in the energy mix. And thirdly, don't invest in pipelines from unstable areas that are unlikely ever to supply the full volume... without a helping hand from Russia.
Some "design".
