Russia has received permission to build the South Stream Gas Pipeline under the Black Sea, Interfax reports.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin met Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz and thanked the Turkish authorities for the permission to construct the pipeline in the exclusive economic zone.
He also thanked the European Commission for supporting the South Stream. The prime minister reminded that Gazprom (Russia), Eni (Italy), EdF (France) and BASF (Germany) are shareholders of the project.
The Deputy CEO of Gazprom, Alexander Medvedev, said that reaching an agreement with the gas transport system of Ukraine would not end up with abandonment of the South Stream project, RIA Novosti reports.
Medvedev said that even the Nord Stream, South Stream and Nabucco would leave a deficit of 15-20 billion cubic meters of gas in Europe.
