Azernews.Az

Iran may participate in the Nabucco pipeline project seeking to deliver Caspian and Central Asian gas to European markets, Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki has said.
Mottaki said during a visit to Ankara that Tehran is interested in the Western-backed route bypassing Russia, Turkey’s Hurriyet newspaper reported.
"The key issue is where gas for the pipeline will come from. If it comes from the western Caspian, this can be only Azerbaijan. If it is the eastern part, gas from Turkmenistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Iran is coming to the fore. Also, perhaps Russia at some point will stop transporting gas through Ukraine’s territory and move to join Nabucco?"
Mottaki noted that Iran and Switzerland have reached a gas supply agreement.
"Other European countries are seeking our gas as well. We therefore believe that Iran may turn into one of the key Nabucco participants," Mottaki said.
The 3,300-kilometer Nabucco pipeline, which will run from eastern Turkey to the Austrian capital Vienna, is expected to come online in 2014. So far, only Azerbaijan, Iraq and Egypt have pledged to supply gas for Nabucco, which will carry 31 billion cubic meters of gas annually, when fully operational. The 7.9 billion-euro project, which will help European countries to diversify supplies of energy, is headed by Austria’s OMV AG with shareholders RWE AG of Germany, Hungary’s Mol Nyrt., Romania’s Transgaz SA, Bulgaria’s Bulgargaz AD and Turkey’s Botas.*