Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has recommended that the construction of the South Stream gas pipeline should start in end-2012.

"I think it would be desirable to start at the end of next year," Putin told Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller at a meeting on Friday.

On Wednesday, Turkey gave permission for the construction of South Stream's underwater section in its Black Sea exclusive economic zone.

The design documentation for the project should be ready by the end of 2012, with construction works expected to start in 2013.

The first gas is to flow at the end of 2015.

The construction of the gas conduit, planned to bring Russian gas to Western Europe by circumventing Ukraine, was initially scheduled to start in 2013.

Gazprom confirmed that Miller had ordered that the start date for the construction works be brought forward to 2012.

Bulgaria is among the transit countries in the project, together with Serbia, Hungary, Slovenia and Austria.

Earlier this week, Miller said that Russia might give up plans to build South Stream if it managed to acquire 50% of Ukraine's gas transmission grid, claiming that the country would suffer huge losses if the gas pipeline was launched.

One day later, the allegations were refuted by Gazprom Vice President Alexander Medvedev, who announced that the project would be implemented regardless of the outcome of the negotiations with Ukraine.

Commenting on the importance of the natural gas pipeline, Medvedev explained that even if the that  total capacities of Nord Stream, South Stream, Nabucco and the LPG terminals were combined, Europe would end up with a deficit of 15-20 billion cubic meters.

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