BELGRADE, Serbia, Oct. 10 (UPI) -- Serbian companies could start building their part of the South Stream pipeline, slated to carry Russian natural gas, by year's end, an official said.
Gazprom Chief Executive Alexei Miller said last week a management committee had completed feasibility studies on the project, noting "the entire project is progressing in full compliance with the schedule."
The South Stream pipeline would split with arteries headed to Greece and the Balkans after passing through the Turkish waters of the Black Sea. It would carry roughly 2.2 trillion cubic feet of gas per year when it goes into service by 2015.
Dusan Bajatovic, general director of Serbia's state-owned gas company Srbijagas, told delegates at an energy conference that construction on the 250-mile section of South Stream could start by the end of the year.
"I expect that, by the end of the year, since we are about a year ahead of other partners, we'll be in the position to begin construction of the geostrategic energy project," he was quoted by Bloomberg News as saying.
Serbia signed on to the South Stream project in 2009. South Stream is part of Russia's plans to diversify its gas transit options. Political disputes with Ukraine make conventional routes to Europe risky.
