Russia, Macedonia Sign Agreement on South Stream

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak, Prime Minister of Macedonia Nikola Gruevski and Minister of Finance Zoran Stavreski signed a bilateral agreement on construction of the branch of the South Stream gas pipeline to Macedonia.

This agreement will increase energy security of both countries and will establish favorable conditions for engineering, construction and operation of the gas infrastructure in Macedonia.

To implement the project partners will register a joint venture on a parity basis. Russian Energy Ministry and Ministry of Finance of Macedonia will be in charge of the project.

The South Stream gas pipeline project is aimed to increase the export of natural gas to Europe and to ensure a reliable supply. The offshore section of the pipeline, about 900 km, will run under the Black Sea from Russia to Bulgaria. The onshore section provides an opportunity for countries in Central and Southern Europe. The design capacity is 63 billion cubic meters per year. Commissioning is scheduled for the end of 2015, the official start of pipeline construction is on December 7, 2012.