EU ASKS RUSSIA TO GO AHEAD WITH SOUTH STREAM
Economy
December 19, 12:13 UTC+3
Bulgaria is obliged to stand by its obligations to prepare for
construction work and issue the required permissions, Bulgarian Prime
Minister said after talks with the EU leaders (c) EPA/KOCA SULEJMANOVIC
(c) AP Photo/Mikhail Metzel
Bulgaria asks Russia for meeting on South Stream project
SOFIA, December 19. /TASS/. Bulgaria will issue all the required
permissions required for starting the construction of the South Stream
pipeline and keep working on the project, Bulgarian Prime Minister
Boyko Borisov said after talks with the leaders of European countries
on the sidelines of the EU summit in Brussels on Friday.
“I have received the full support and understanding of the European
Council. Bulgaria should not be held responsible and pay the fines
for the project’s termination,” the BNGES news agency quotes Borisov
as saying.
The Bulgarian prime minister went to Brussels to discuss with his
counterparts further action regarding the South Stream project,
abandoned by Russia.
“The answer to my question about South Stream was unequivocal — go
ahead with implementing the inter-governmental agreements in order to
avoid litigations and penalties and fines that may follow, the way it
happened to the Belene nuclear power plant project. From this moment
on all other liabilities are the liabilities of the European Union,”
Borisov said. “Our country is obliged to stand by its obligations to
prepare for construction work, in particular, for the seabed stretch
of the pipeline and issue the required permissions,” Borisov said,
adding he would now be waiting for a reaction from Gazprom.
“If Gazprom terminates the project despite the permissions issued by
Bulgaria, it will be its fault, not Bulgaria’s,” Borisov said.
(c) EPA/FILIP SINGER
Germany’s ex-chancellor names two reasons for South Stream termination
Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak and head of Bulgaria’s
Energy Minister Temenuzhka Petkova, according to the Bulgarian Energy
Ministry’s statement, are to hold telephone negotiations over South
Stream later on Friday. It is expected that the two ministers may
agree on a date of their personal meeting.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on December 1 said that “in the
current situation Russia would not implement the South Stream project.
Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller declared that the South Stream project was
no longer relevant.
“The project is closed. Period,” Miller told the media about
Russian-Turkish summit talks on the alternative to South Stream.
The South Stream gas carrier, originally estimated at EURO 15.5
billion, was expected to bring an annual 67 billion cubic meters of
gas to Europe.