Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee took part today in the South Stream Transport Supervisory Board meeting in Zurich (Switzerland).

The Board members approved the signing of a contract for laying the first string of South Stream's offshore section and a pipe procurement contract for the second string of the gas pipeline offshore section.

The contract for laying the first string will, among other things, envisage the landfalls infrastructure development and the construction of production facilities for four offshore gas pipeline strings in the shore crossing areas in Russia and Bulgaria.

South Stream's offshore section will comprise four parallel strings laid under the Black Sea within a single routing at the depth of more than 2,200 meters. Each string will be longer than 930 kilometers.

“The South Stream project is steadily progressing. Contracts for laying the first string as well as for procuring pipes for the second string will be signed before the end of this March. In less than two years the first gas supplies will be carried to Europe via the new route protected from transit risks,” said Alexey Miller.

Background

South Stream is Gazprom's global infrastructure project aimed at constructing a gas pipeline with a capacity of 63 billion cubic meters across the Black Sea to Southern and Central Europe for the purpose of diversifying the natural gas export routes and eliminating transit risks. The first gas will be supplied via South Stream in late 2015. The gas pipeline will reach its full design capacity in 2018.

According to the Shareholders Agreement of South Stream Transport, Gazprom holds a 50 per cent stake in the project, Italian Eni – a 20 per cent stake, German Wintershall Holding and French EDF – 15 per cent stakes each.

In December 2012 the South Stream gas pipeline construction started near Anapa in the Krasnodar Territory. On October 31, 2013 a festive ceremony of welding the first joint at the Bulgarian section of South Stream took place. On November 24, 2013 the South Stream construction started in Serbia.

On January 29, 2014 South Stream Transport signed a contract and launched a tender among Russian and German pipe plants for the procurement of more than 75 thousand 12-meter pipes with a diameter of 813 millimeters (32 inches) for the first string of South Stream's offshore section.