MOSCOW, Nov. 18 (UPI) -- The first stages of construction of the Nord Stream gas pipeline through the Baltic Sea will begin in April 2010, officials said Tuesday.
Paul Corcoran, finance director of the Nord Stream pipeline consortium, said Tuesday in Moscow that construction would begin in 2009, with 30 percent of the financing coming from shareholder capital, ITAR-TASS reported.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin had pressured European states to move ahead with the project, which would bring natural gas to Germany from dual pipelines along the Black Sea. This comes as Europe last week set out to ease its dependency on Russian natural resources.
Corcoran said negotiations with Sweden on the project were near finalization, and talks are scheduled for December with Finland, Denmark, Germany and Russia.
Russian gas giant Gazprom finalized a deal with Germany's E.ON in early October, paving the way to satisfying the supplies for the planned gas pipeline.
The Nord Stream consortium group said the pipeline is one of the most advanced pipelines planned for Europe and a "priority project" for the region.
