The US and EU-sponsored gas transit pipeline project Nabucco has no future, according to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin.

"Given the estimates of the Turkmen side, as well as European and international experts, the current market situation on the gas track allows us to say and I say so without sarcasm that there are no prospects for Nabucco. There are no real prospects of increasing volumes, which makes the Nabucco project irrelevant. This can be forgotten until a certain moment of economic growth. The conclusion is: Nabucco has no future," Russia's "energy tsar" Sechin told journalists Friday, as cited by RIA Novosti.

Sechin also declared that by the time Nabucco is expected to be launched – 2015 – Russia will have launched its own pipelines North Stream and South Stream.

The Nabucco project is supposed to bring natural gas from the Middle East, Central Asia, and the Caspian Region to European countries via Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Austria.

It is a key element of western strategy to cut Europe's dependence on Russian energy supplies. The EUR 7.9 B pipeline is expected to have an annual capacity of 31 billion cubic meters of gas, or no more than five percent of Europe's gas consumption in 2020.

Bulgaria is expected to become the point of geographic crossing of the two competitive pipelines, Nabucco and South Stream. Sechin's statement about the lack of future for Nabucco comes a day after Bulgarian Prime Minister Borisov and Russian PM Putin agreed in a telephone conversation that the two countries' energy companies will set up by November 15 a joint venture for building the Bulgarian section of South Stream.

Bulgaria has previously been described as the "problematic" country balking at the construction of South Stream in order to exact benefits from Moscow. The prospects of the pipe bypassing Bulgaria by going through Romania, Serbia and Macedonia are believed to have forced the Bulgarian government into agreeing to go head with the project.

The South Stream gas transit pipeline is supposed to be ready by 2015. Its construction is expected to cost between EUR 19 B and EUR 24 B. It will be transporting 63 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually, or 35% of Russia's total annual natural gas export to Europe.

The South Stream pipe will start near Novorosiysk on the Russian Black Sea coast, and will go to Bulgaria's Varna; the underwater section will be 900 km long.

In Bulgaria, the pipe is supposed to split in two - one pipeline going to Greece and Southern Italy, and another one going to Austria and Northern Italy through Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia.

The project was initiated by Gazprom and the Italian company Eni, and the French company EdF is also planned to join as a shareholder. It is seen as a competitor to the EU-sponsored project Nabucco seeking to bring non-Russian gas to Europe.

As early as April 2010, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced that the French company EDF will also become a partner in the South Stream project. Back then he said that EDF asked for a 20% share, which, if granted, will probably leave Gazprom and Eni with 40% each.

As early as April 2010, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced that the French company EDF will also become a partner in the South Stream project. Back then he said that EDF asked for a 20% share, which, if granted, will probably leave Gazprom and Eni with 40% each.

At their meeting on Saturday in St. Petersburg, Berlusconi and Putin welcomed the idea of having German companies join in as shareholders. There is no indication as to how the joining of RWE or some other German company would re-apportion the stakes.

The ownership of the Russian-Bulgarian joint company to build and manage the Bulgarian South Stream section will be split 50-50%.

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