"Gazprom" has frozen investment in the project "Southern Corridor"

The company "Gazprom" has decided to freeze investments in the project "South Stream" because of problems in the negotiations with the Turkish partner. This decision could result in capacity reduction pipeline "Turkish Stream" almost twice - up to 32 billion cubic meters of gas per year, according to "Kommersant".

"The linear part of the western branch is almost ready, there is only need to increase the capacity of compressor stations, and on the eastern branch of the construction is, in fact, in the initial stage", - said the source. It was noted earlier that the company intended to build a "Southern Corridor" in full. According to him, the construction of conservation and payment of contractual penalties are very expensive. Stop investments in the eastern branch of the "Southern Corridor" means that the company has no plans to increase the capacity of "the Turkish stream" to more than 32 billion cubic meters of gas a year, the newspaper notes.

= In the seven months of negotiations with Turkey "Gazprom" managed to obtain permission to conduct design research for a gas pipeline from a possible four in the Turkish sector of the Black Sea. An alternative to the current draft could be the expansion of the Nord Stream pipeline in the Baltic Sea, a memorandum on the construction of its second stage was signed in mid-June with Shell, OMV and E.On. When it was built, it can provide a capacity of 55 billion cubic meters a year, which will manage only two threads "of the Turkish stream" in the south.

The company's decision to reduce investment in the project, the cost of which is constantly raised no confidence in the fully loaded, according to Valery Nesterov of Sberbank Investment Research «not happy" because of possible strategic mistakes. European officials noted a lack of understanding of the market fast change of plans "Gazprom".

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