The United States, Washington, July 22 / Trend , N.Bogdanova/
Gas reserves in the Caspian Sea are able to realize only one large project - either Nabucco or South Stream - and chances of the second seem high, the Head of the Russia, Eurasia and International Energy Security Department of The Heritage Foundation (U.S.) Ariel Cohen believes.
"Gazprom is both a financial-economic and industrial leader, but there is no such leader (a transnational gas company) in the Nabucco project," Cohen said.
Turkey's constant attempts to involve Iran in the Nabucco project undermine its chances for life, he said.
"I believe Russia will impose any amount of pressure on Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan to prevent the Nabucco pipeline. It depends on all the project's participants and whether they can coordinate their activities enough to withstand such pressure," Cohen said.
The Nabucco project worth 7.9 billion Euros will be delivering Azerbaijani and Central Asian gas to the EU by 2014. The construction of the pipeline is expected to begin in 2011. Its maximum capacity will be 31 billion cubic meters per year. Nabucco shareholders are the Austrian OMV, Hungarian MOL, Bulgarian Bulgargaz, Romanian Transgaz, Turkish Botas and German RWE, with 16.7 percent each