Economy
BP says Nabucco is dead, RWE, European Commission say project is sill breathing
Iain Conn, BP's head of fuel refining and marketing said in a speech on Thursday that BP and Azeri state oil group Socar were now considering only two options for their gas - a smaller, pipeline from the Nabucco consortium, known as 'Nabucco West", and the South East Europe Pipeline (SEEP).
BP, which is at the helm of the Shah Deniz 2 consortium, believes the project aimed at constructing a 3,900-kilometre new pipeline with a 31 billion cubic metre annual capacity is economically not viable.
The consortium will decide by the end of June whether to consider a shorter version of the pipeline (Nabucco West), which would have a smaller capacity and a length of only 1,300-1,600 kilometres between the Turkish-Bulgarian border and Austria’s Baumgarten and beyond. According to original plans, the pipeline would have started at the eastern end of Turkey.The SEEP and TAP (to southern Italy) pipelines are also in competition to carry Azeri gas to Europe.
Hungary’s MOL is also interested in Nabucco through its gas pipeline operator subsidiary FGSZ. The fuels company hs recently said it does not consider the project viable anymore and it would sell its stake in the consortium. There were also press reports that MOL is eying the SEEP too.German utility RWE says it is likely the original plans for the Nabucco gas pipeline project to carry Caspian area gas to Europe will still be discussed, even if a proposed shorter route is picked, board member Leonhard Birnbaum said.
"We are confident that Nabucco West will win the bid, and then I still think that the original Nabucco concept will be discussed again," Birnbaum told Reuters in e-mailed comments on Friday.
RWE is part of the consortium backing the Nabucco project, which also includes Austria’s OMV, Hungary's MOL, Turkey's Botas, BEH of Bulgaria and Romania's Transgaz.
The European Commission said today that the full-scale version of the Nabucco pipeline is still under consideration.
"To our understanding, the Nabucco classic version, is still on the table," Reuters cited EC energy spokeswoman Marlene Holzner as saying.
For the European Union - which is seeking to reduce its reliance on Russian gas - the name of the pipeline is not the most important thing, she added in emailed comments.
Rather it is crucial that the "content is Nabucco".
That means there is a need for a new pipeline to be built outside the European Union, which if necessary can be expanded to cope with future demand and that the legal framework surrounding it is clear and transparent.
BP, which is at the helm of the Shah Deniz 2 consortium, believes the project aimed at constructing a 3,900-kilometre new pipeline with a 31 billion cubic metre annual capacity is economically not viable.
The consortium will decide by the end of June whether to consider a shorter version of the pipeline (Nabucco West), which would have a smaller capacity and a length of only 1,300-1,600 kilometres between the Turkish-Bulgarian border and Austria’s Baumgarten and beyond. According to original plans, the pipeline would have started at the eastern end of Turkey.The SEEP and TAP (to southern Italy) pipelines are also in competition to carry Azeri gas to Europe.
Hungary’s MOL is also interested in Nabucco through its gas pipeline operator subsidiary FGSZ. The fuels company hs recently said it does not consider the project viable anymore and it would sell its stake in the consortium. There were also press reports that MOL is eying the SEEP too.German utility RWE says it is likely the original plans for the Nabucco gas pipeline project to carry Caspian area gas to Europe will still be discussed, even if a proposed shorter route is picked, board member Leonhard Birnbaum said.
"We are confident that Nabucco West will win the bid, and then I still think that the original Nabucco concept will be discussed again," Birnbaum told Reuters in e-mailed comments on Friday.
RWE is part of the consortium backing the Nabucco project, which also includes Austria’s OMV, Hungary's MOL, Turkey's Botas, BEH of Bulgaria and Romania's Transgaz.
The European Commission said today that the full-scale version of the Nabucco pipeline is still under consideration.
"To our understanding, the Nabucco classic version, is still on the table," Reuters cited EC energy spokeswoman Marlene Holzner as saying.
For the European Union - which is seeking to reduce its reliance on Russian gas - the name of the pipeline is not the most important thing, she added in emailed comments.
Rather it is crucial that the "content is Nabucco".
That means there is a need for a new pipeline to be built outside the European Union, which if necessary can be expanded to cope with future demand and that the legal framework surrounding it is clear and transparent.
