Azernews.Az

Russia considers as normal Azerbaijan`s joining the Western-backed Nabucco pipeline that will pump Caspian gas to Europe, while bypassing Russian territory, a source from the Russia`s Foreign Ministry has said.
According to the ministry`s Media and Information Department, it is the sovereign right of all countries to take part in international energy projects. "Azerbaijan`s support for the Nabucco project is evidence of the country`s desire to diversify its hydrocarbon exports," the source said.
It noted further that Moscow is not opposed to the construction of the multinational Nabucco gas pipeline, a project that envisions reducing Europe`s energy dependence from Russia. However, the main criteria in selecting hydrocarbon transit routes to world markets should not be politically motivated, but, rather, be based upon purely commercial and environmental considerations.
A joint declaration on building the gas pipeline was signed in Prague on May 7 by the European Union, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Egypt, while representatives of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan stopped short of signing the document.
Nonetheless, Russia would not object to depriving Nabucco of Azerbaijani gas. Gazprom, the world`s largest natural gas producer, has said it is ready to buy all the gas to be produced during the second stage of an offshore Azerbaijani development slated as a resource base for the Nabucco project.
"We`re ready to buy the whole volume of Shahdaniz II," Gazprom Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Alexander Medvedev, said during a Moscow interview with Bloomberg Television on Friday.
Gazprom`s network is the "optimal" route for gas from Azerbaijan to reach Europe, Medvedev added.
Azerbaijan lacks a direct gas link to Europe and has been unable to agree with Turkey on terms for the transit of larger amounts of gas. However, state-run Gazprom`s purchases of Azerbaijani fuel could undermine the supply base for European-supported pipeline projects, such as Nabucco, designed to diversify supply routes away from Russia.
Representatives of Azerbaijani state energy firm SOCAR plan to meet Gazprom this month to negotiate a deal to sell gas to Russia beginning next year, Vagif Aliyev, general manager of SOCAR`s investment division said in April. SOCAR`s partners in the Shahdaniz gas-condensate project, including StatoilHydro, BP and Lukoil, are not participating in these negotiations, he said.

Engineering
Detailed engineering and planning for the complete route of the Nabucco pipeline has reached an intensive phase, the Nabucco Gas Pipeline International said on its official website.
Five Local FEED (Front End Engineering and Design) Engineers for Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey have been recently appointed. The British-owned engineering consultant company Penspen is now coordinating the planning efforts.
"These local firms are currently evaluating and investigating all technical details of the entire pipeline route to realize the necessary detailed planning", said Reinhard Mitschek, Managing Director of Nabucco Gas Pipeline International.