Azerbaijan, Baku, Aug. 14 / Trend A.Badalova /
The Hungarian section of the Nabucco pipeline, which envisages the transportation of gas from the Caspian region and Middle East to Europe, has been granted the last necessary Environmental Permit, Nabucco Gas Pipeline International GmbH reported on Tuesday.
Hungary is now the first Nabucco country to successfully finish the permitting process. Nabucco will cross 384 km of Hungarian territory.
According to Nabucco Gas Pipeline International GmbH Managing Director Reinhard Mitschek, the granting of this permit is a substantial step forward in Hungary and signifies the advanced stage of development of Nabucco West.
The Managing Director of the Nabucco National Company in Hungary, Gabor Bercsi said that the next steps in the country are now to finalise the Front End Engineering and Design for Nabucco West and to continue the process of obtaining the necessary permits for construction.
Nabucco West is a short-cut version of Nabucco project, which envisages construction of the pipeline from Turkish-Bulgarian border to Austria. Gas to be produced within the second phase of Azerbaijani Shah Deniz gas field development is considered as the main source for the project.
The project's current shareholders are Bulgarian Energy Holding, Romanian Transgaz, Turkish Botas, Austrian OMV, German RWE and Hungary's FGSZ.
In June the Shah Deniz consortium selected Nabucco West as the single pipeline option for the potential export of Shah Deniz Stage 2 gas to Central Europe. The final decision on pipeline export route is expected in 2013.