Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said that his ministry was in touch with Greece on the construction of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline. Russia and Greece are working on a memorandum on the construction of the gas pipeline from the Greek-Turkish border to other European countries. The Greek Energy Ministry reported on April 15 that Athens and Moscow will sign the document next week. The Greek section of the pipeline will cost about 2 billion euros, running to the Macedonian border. Private companies will build the pipeline, RIA Novosti reports.
Vyacheslav Kulagin, the director of the Center of Studies of World Energy Markets at the RAS Institute of Energy Studies, noted that the memorandum was not a guarantee of gas supplies to all consumers of the EU. The document, however, gives rise to a new guaranteed consumer. The expert warned that the European Commission could complicate the realization of the plans due to the third energy package. Russia, in Kulagin's words, should be especially vigilant, avoiding risks when investing.
Alexey Belogoryev, deputy director for energy at the Institute of Energy and Finances, expressed even greater skepticism about the memorandum and the Turkish Stream project. He explained that it was a declarative framework agreement, possibly mentioning a potential route and connection to the gas infrastructure of Greece. It has no guarantees of realization, the expert added.
Belogoryev believes that the scrapping of the South Stream was the result of poor investments of Gazprom, because organizing gas shipments to China via the eastern route was picked as a priority for the following 3-4 years. No money was left for the ground section of the South Stream. The expert said that Gazprom did not want to be the main investor in the ground section construction in Greece, Macedonia, Serbia and Hungary. European companies, including ones actively cooperating with Gazprom, show no interest in the Turkish Stream.
The analyst reminded that the interference of the European Commission in the realization of the project in future has added risks. The framework agreement would probably need no approval from the EU, the expert speculates. Belogoryev said that Greece had little impact on the project. Its companies are reluctant to co-invest, considering the economic situation. The European Commission, in his words, is even less interested in the Turkish Stream than the South Stream.
Belogoryev added that sanctions could play a negative role in the realization of the plans. Sanctions may affect Italy's Saipem, the company building the underwater section. Gazprom cannot complete the underwater section fast enough alone, the expert concluded.
