Azerbaijan, Baku, March 5 / Trend , A. Badalova /
The Nabucco Consortium welcomes yesterday's decision by the Turkish parliament to ratify the treaty that will enable construction and operation of the Nabucco gas pipeline in Turkey with a secure legal framework for the gas transit.
"No other mooted project in the southern corridor has those secured transit rights," said in the Consortium's statement.
Turkish parliament on Thursday night approved a bill on the construction of the Nabucco pipeline, which envisages the gas supply from the Caspian region and the Middle East in the EU countries.
"The Intergovernmental Agreement lays down the political and legal foundation for the project. The ratification in Turkey sets again a clear signal of intent to realize the project", states Werner Auli, Chairman of the Nabucco Steering Committee.
"The ratification in all parliaments is now an important further milestone," Reinhard Mitschek, Managing Director of the Nabucco Gas Pipeline GmbH said.
RWE believes that Turkey will draw considerable benefit from its active role in the Nabucco pipeline project. Not only will the country extend its already significant energy transit role, gas from new producer countries like Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Iraq, as well as a direct link to a lucrative European sales market, will boost the liquidity of the Turkish and European gas market.
Stefan Judisch, CEO of RWE Supply & Trading says no other potential pipeline project in the southern corridor has secured transit rights through Turkey. Through the ratification of the IGA Nabucco has now secured these rights. The key gas supply countries of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan now have the necessary framework to conclude gas supply arrangements for Nabucco.
RWE is conducting intensive discussions with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan over gas supply contracts, with concrete progress on these negotiations anticipated in the first half of this year.
Nabucco gas pipeline project is worth €7.9 billion. Participants of the project are Austrian OMV, Hungarian MOL, Bulgarian Bulgargaz, Romanian Transgaz, Turkish Botas and German RWE companies. Each of participants has equal share to the amount of 16.67 percent. Construction of gas pipeline is planned to be launched in 2011, the first supplies - in 2014. Maximal capacity of the pipeline will hit 31 billion cubic meters per year. Nabucco Gas Pipeline International shareholders will invest 30 percent of total cost of the project, the rest 70 percent will be paid owing to loans.