Turkey urges haste on Nabucco

BRUSSELS, March 5 (UPI) -- It is imperative that partners to the planned Nabucco natural gas pipeline move forward on the project as soon as possible, Turkish officials said.

Turkish Energy Minister Hilmi Guler told an audience at an energy conference in Brussels that talks on the planned $10.7 billion project should evolve toward action, Turkey's Hurriyet news service reports.

"We want this project to be concluded as soon as possible," Guler said. "We do not want to lose any more time with discussions. It is now time to work, not to talk."

The proposed 2,051-mile pipeline would link Caspian and Middle Eastern suppliers to Turkey and on to European markets. The project company, Nabucco Gas Pipeline International GmbH, says the pipeline could by 2014 bring an estimated 282.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas to markets each year in the initial stages.

Europe views the pipeline as a means to ease its reliance on Russian energy. The project has been met with some skepticism, however, because of concerns over gas supplies and investments.