Burgas-Alexandroupolis Pipeline Is to Be Late

The project, due to pump 700,000 barrels per day of Russian crude a year into the Aegean port of Alexandroupolis from the Bulgarian Black Sea port of Burgas, was expected to start in late 2008 or early 2009.
It was fixed by the three countries after 14 years of negotiations and delays.

But Bulgarian regional development and construction minister Asen Gagauzov told Reuters that the three countries were yet to pick a bank to help them raise funding, prepare an updated feasibility study and work out the project details.

"We expect to be ready to start construction around September-October 2009," Gagauzov said in an interview. "To finish the project would take about two years, which means launching the pipeline in 2011."

The global financial crisis and tighter credit conditions should not hinder efforts to raise funding for the project, which was initially estimated at between $600 million and $900 million, he said.

"The Russian party has said that if other funding is not found, they are ready to provide the money. But our wish is to have an investment project with banks providing the funding," Gagauzov said.

Author: Ksenia Kochneva