MOSCOW, Mar. 28 – An international consortium set up to implement a project to build a gas pipe bypassing Ukraine and the Polish company PGNiP (Polish Oil and Gas Company) have agreed in a letter of intent to study possible pipeline routes and prepare a feasibility study, Interfax reported on Monday.
The sides have defined three possible routes, which will be used to start an evaluation of the project, Interfax cites a source in the Russian gas monopoly Gazprom as saying.
The first route – Brest (Belarus) – Velke Kapusany, a Slovak-populated area on the border with Ukraine – passes to the east of the Polish city of Lublin and is the shortest, and therefore most economically rational of the three possible routes.
According to the Gazprom source, this project has the support of all the consortium members.
However, the Polish side is against this route as the proposed pipeline would pass through many national parks and forest reserves.
In addition, the Polish side does not believe this route has much potential in terms of providing gas to Europe.
The second route, which has two possibilities, may pass to the west of Lublin along the existing Polish pipeline system.
The first possible route for this pipeline is Brest-Jaslo (Poland)-Cisna (Slovakia)-Velke Kapusany and the second possible route is Brest-Jaslo-Novy Sacz (Poland)-Velke Kapusany.
The third route – Brest-Krakow (Poland)-Cadca (Slovakia) – involves the construction of a new pipeline along the existing system to the border between the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
According to the Gazprom source, this route is being promoted by the Polish side, but is not acceptable to the other members of the consortium.
The source also said that a preliminary feasibility study for the three routes should be prepared by mid-April this year. A decision will then be reached on the economic effectiveness and technical possibilities of for the chosen route of the future pipeline, he said.
An international consortium comprised of Gazprom, Gaz de France, the Italian Snam and the German Ruhrgas and Wintershall was set up in mid-October last year.
At that time the participants signed a memorandum of mutual understanding to set up a consortium to develop and implement a project to build a pipeline from Brest to Velke Kapusany.
