Azernews.Az

The plans for the Nabucco gas pipeline's construction must not become an endless story, Austrian Economy Minister Reinhold Mitterlener said on Friday, ITAR-TASS reported.

He said that the final decision on the issue must be made in 2012. Otherwise, the project will lose meaning.

The minister said that he plans to go to Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan with Austrian President Heinz Fischer during the second decade of October. These countries have huge reserves of natural gas. They have been considered potential suppliers for an extensive period.

"We intend to conduct transparent political lobbying of our project in Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan," he added.

He said that representatives of Western European countries may join the so-called "representational committee" of the "Nabucco" project, formed by Austrian oil and gas concern OMV.

The consortium includes energy companies from Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Hungary, Romania, and Turkey.

Mitterlener said that the issue of filling the pipeline with sufficient material for transportation to Europe is quite complex, as Azerbaijan considers three alternative routes to pump gas to Southeastern Europe. There are a few chances that the choice will be made in favor of Nabucco. The initial assumption that the demand will attract providers has not been justified, the minister said.

The West is interested in cooperating with Azerbaijan in the energy sector, in particular within the Southern Gas Corridor.

The Southern Corridor is a priority EU energy project. It will diversify energy supply routes and resources, and increase EU energy security. The Southern Corridor includes the Nabucco gas pipeline, Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), White Stream, and Turkey-Greece-Italy pipeline (ITGI).