Turkey and four European Union countries recently signed an agreement to construct a new natural gas pipeline across Turkey. The pipeline will bring gas from the Caspian Sea region and Central Asia to Europe. The aim is to reduce the continent’s energy dependence on Russian gas.
The four EU governments that signed the pact are Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Austria, and European Commission President Jose Manual Barroso and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Malike attended the ceremony in Ankara, Turkey. The 3,300 kilometer-long Nabucco pipeline will pump gas across Turkey to the four European nations. Currently, Russia provides one fourth of Europe’s gas needs, but price disputes between Russia and Ukraine have disrupted the flow of gas in recent years.
The pipeline is expected to be able to pump 31 billion cubic meters of gas per year by 2010, which will be 5 – 10 percent of the EU’s total consumption. Construction should begin in 2010, with the cost estimated at 7.9 billion euros. The project is being developed by a consortium of six companies and the European Investment Bank will finance one-fourth of the project.
EC President Barroso hailed Monday’s deal as “a powerful illustration of the strategic bonds between Turkey and the EU.”
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