Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 2 / Trend /
The Nabucco project is significant for Europeans, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. The interview was published on the Web site of the Azertaj state news agency. Aliyev said he appreciated the recent Nabucco summit and called said the meeting an important event.
"We have heard much about Nabucco for years. But frankly speaking, we haven't seen any practical steps taken in this direction. Now it is clear that the project is very relevant for Europeans," Aliyev said.
The project must be financed by any possible sources, such as centralized banking packages, he said.
"It is difficult for members-companies in the Nabucco consortium to gather finances in large amounts. Strong financial support must be a basic condition for the project. The absence of such support could create an obstacle for implementing the project," Aliyev said.
Existing gas pipelines completely cover Azerbaijan's current volume of gas production.
But he country has major plans to increase gas production.
"In the future we will need more routes and Nabucco is one of them," Aliyev said.
Azerbaijan will also evaluate proposals on gas transportation to Russia, he added.
"We have recently received this proposal. But we haven't discussed the issue since mid-2008. We have never considered this direction as a potential route for gas transportation and Russia has never voiced an interest on this matter. We received the proposal 6 months ago and must evaluate it," Aliyev said.
"The proposal itself is attractive. If we can sell our gas on our own border without any problems with transit countries, without any problems with transport projects and if the offered price is good, then why we should not consider the proposal?" Aliyev asked.
Azerbaijan does not depend on one route to transport its energy resources.
"We are considering proposals from Gazprom, Turkey, Greece, Italy, Bulgaria and many other [countries and companies]. We will certainly choose the best option for our country," Aliyev said.