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TurkStream line pipe in Serbia to be constructed before end of 2019

The length of the Serbian section will reach 403 km, Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller said

Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller Valery Sharifulin/TASS

Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller

© Valery Sharifulin/TASS

MOSCOW, January 17. /TASS/. Construction of TurkStream line pipe in Serbia will be completed by the end of 2019, Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller said on Thursday in an interview with Channel One. He added that the length of the gas pipeline on the territory of Serbia will be 403 km.

"The gas pipeline will run from the Serbian-Bulgarian to the Serbian-Hungarian border. As for the deadline, line pipe of the gas pipeline will be built before the end of 2019," Miller said. "The length of the Serbian section will reach 403 km. Construction of a compressor station is planned," he added.

Miller said in an interview with Rossiya-1 TV channel that Gazprom will soon begin building infrastructure in Serbia for the TurkStream pipeline. "Construction will start literally any day now," he said, answering a question about the start of construction of the gas transportation infrastructure in Serbia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier at a joint press conference with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Russia is ready to invest around $1.4 bln in infrastructure development in Serbia to continue the TurkStream project through this country.

He noted that Russia is ready and has the necessary resources for the implementation of projects for the continuation of the pipeline to Europe, and "many countries show interest in it," but everything needs to be properly formalized. "Together with Serbia, we are working on it, it concerns development of infrastructure, including transit infrastructure on the Serbian territory. We are ready to invest the necessary resources, it will amount to around $1.4 bln," the Russian leader said, answering a question about the possibility of extending the TurkStream gas pipeline to Serbia.

The TurkStream project includes construction of a gas pipeline under the Black Sea to the European part of Turkey and further to the border with Greece. The first line will be designed to supply the Turkish market, the second - for gas supply to the countries of South and Southeast Europe. Gazprom considers Greece, Italy, Bulgaria, Serbia and Hungary as potential markets.

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