Pipeliners

THE HAGUE, November 2 (RIA Novosti) - Russia welcomes new partners in the construction of the North European Gas Pipeline (NEG), but the decision depends on other participants in the project as well, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday. "This project is much more ambitious than the simple construction of a pipeline across the Baltic Sea floor," he said. "It includes the construction of additional storage facilities in various European countries, including the Netherlands, and the construction of additional communication lines on the bottom of the Baltic Sea, possibly, linking the Netherlands and other countries, including the UK." "Russia has received proposals from Dutch partners and is going to study them thoroughly," the president added. The agreement on the NEG was signed September 8 by Russian natural gas monopoly Gazprom and German energy companies BASF and E.ON Ruhrgas. The 1200km pipeline, which is expected to cost 4 million euros, will link Russia and Germany via the Baltic Sea. Offshoots may then be built to link it with Russia's exclave in Europe, the Kaliningrad region, Finland, Sweden, Denmark and the UK. Gazprom is expected to start the construction of the land segment in fall 2005 and the completion of the pipeline is scheduled for 2010.