South Stream Transport, a consortium between Gazprom, Eni S.p.A., EDF, and Wintershall, is ready to begin offshore construction of its South Stream gas pipeline project.
According to a statement on the Gazprom website, construction of the first and the second strings of the offshore gas pipeline is the most complicated part of the project.
Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) activities are completed for the offshore section. At present, the project contractor Saipem is engaged in detailed engineering of the submerged trunkline.
Almost 300 thousand tons of pipes have been supplied for the first offshore string. Pipeline sections for the deep-water part are currently being welded in the port of Burgas.
The South Stream Offshore Pipeline through the Black Sea is the offshore section of the South Stream Gas Pipeline System. It will have a length of 931 kilometers and connect Russia natural gas reserves with consumers in the European Union.
The South Stream Offshore Pipeline will originate at the Russian Black Sea shore in the area of Anapa, cross the Turkish Exclusive Economic Zone of the Black Sea and land on the Bulgarian coast near Varna.
Over its planned design life of half a century, the South Stream Offshore Pipeline will supply up to 63 billion cubic meters of gas each year.
OAO Gazprom holds a 50% stake in the South Stream Transport joint venture; Italy’s Eni S.p.A. holds 20% stake while the French energy company EDF and Germany’s Wintershall Holding GmbH (BASF Group) hold 15% each.
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