South Stream has been registered in Switzerland on a parity basis by Gazprom and Eni. The newly registered entity will carry out the marketing research and technical and economical feasibility study for the South Stream project which is to be completed by the end of 2008.
Gazprom and Eni may also jointly decide to engage other foreign partners in the project. A government level meeting between Russia and Italy with Gazprom and Eni involvement has reportedly been planned for the first quarter of 2008 to outline the schedule for reaching agreements with transit countries along the gas pipeline’s route.
The pipeline will run across the Black Sea seabed to connect Russian and Bulgarian shores. The total length of the Black Sea gas pipeline section will be around 900km with the maximum depth at more than 2000m.
The pipeline’s design capacity will be nearly 30 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas. The offshore section of the South Stream is planned for commission in 2013.
