The trumpet called

Construction of the most expensive gas export pipeline from Russia begins

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will today solemnly announce the beginning of the practical implementation of the idea of ​​​​creating a direct gas pipeline connection between Russia and Germany. The Nord Stream gas pipeline will for the first time in history directly connect Central Europe with Russian resources. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, however, was unable to find time for a visit and will address the rally participants at the construction site of the Portovaya compressor station near Vyborg via video link.

But her predecessor as head of the country’s government , Gerhard Schröder, who almost five years ago, together with Vladimir Putin, blessed the agreement between Gazprom, BASF and E.ON Ruhrgas on laying a pipe, and after losing the election, accepted an offer to head the shareholders committee, will be personally present project company Nord Stream. In addition, the new European Commissioner for Energy, Günter Oettinger, who began his first foreign tour in his new capacity from Russia, will come to the opening of the construction site. Yesterday in Moscow he met with Deputy Prime Minister for the Fuel and Energy Complex Igor Sechin, and also met with the Chairman of the Board of Gazprom Alexei Miller. In an interview with Interfax, a member of the European Commission emphasized that it was no coincidence that he came to Russia first, as he considers it “the most important supplier partner.” He noted that he advocates for fair gas pricing: a fair price covers all the supplier’s investments and is not burdensome for the consumer.

After the launch ceremony for Nord Stream, Mr. Oettinger will head to Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan to discuss the prospects for filling Brussels' most beloved gas transport project with gas - the Nabucco pipeline, which plans to transport gas from the Caspian region to Europe, bypassing Russia.

Yesterday, Nord Stream held a presentation of the project for the press in St. Petersburg, during which it said that laying work would be carried out by three vessels at once (two from the Italian Saipem and one from the Norwegian Allseas). However, the most important questions - the cost of transporting gas through the new pipe and the payback period of the project, the capital and financial costs of which will amount to about 8.8 billion euros - remained unanswered. The company's chief financial officer, Paul Corcoran, said it was a trade secret.

The veil of secrecy is associated with a fairly well-known fact - almost all the risks of the project's recoupment are borne by Gazprom, which is not only the controlling shareholder, but also the guarantor of the pipe loading. According to Mr. Corcoran, Gazprom and Nord Stream have a 22-year contract on a “transport or pay” basis for all 55 billion cubic meters of capacity per year (starting from the commissioning of the second line in 2012). This means that, regardless of the demand for gas in Europe, Gazprom is obliged to fully load Nord Stream (although today Gazprom Export has contracts with clients for only 22 billion cubic meters of gas) and thereby ensure interest payments and profitability investments to other Nord Stream shareholders.

Alexey GRIVACHS