Serbia's Tadic plans South Stream talks

BELGRADE, Serbia, Dec. 11 (UPI) -- Serbian President Boris Tadic is planning a high-level visit to Moscow Dec. 17 to sign three energy deals with Gazprom that include the South Stream pipeline.

The announcement follows a meeting Tuesday with Tadic and Gazprom chief Alexei Miller in Belgrade. Both parties are expected to move ahead on a package that includes general cooperation in the oil and gas sector as well as provisions to include Serbia in the South Stream project.

The planned South Stream natural gas pipeline will carry Russian natural gas through the Balkans to Italy along a 560-mile route. Around 250 miles of the pipeline would travel through Serbia.

Tadic will lead a delegation to meet with Russian officials next week on the heels of an earlier visit for the funeral of Russian Orthodox Patriarch Alexy II, RIA Novosti said.

Both parties signed a preliminary agreement Jan. 25 by which Gazprom Neft, the oil division of Gazprom, acquires a majority stake in the Serbian state-owned Petroleum Industry of Serbia, or NIS, for $400 million, major investments and provisions for inclusion in South Stream.

NIS boasts the largest number of gasoline stations in Serbia and produces around 7.3 million barrels of crude oil per year.