ISTANBUL, October 10. /TASS/. Turkey continues discussing the Turkish Stream gas pipeline project with Russia and looks positively at its prospects, Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan said at the World Energy Congress on Monday.

"We continue discussing with Russia the project of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline, by which gas we currently receive through the Balkans will come directly across the Black Sea. And we look positively at this project," the Turkish president said.

According to Erdogan, the project’s "development in the context of the situation on the European energy market" will become the second stage of its implementation.

New corridor of gas supply to Europe

The official stressed that Turkey aimed to create a new energy transport corridor for Europe in cooperation with Russia.

"We are a transit country but we also invest into development of the technical base. Therefore we aim at developing the fourth energy corridor for fuel delivery to Europe together with Russia, Algeria and Norway," Erdogan said.

Agreement almost ready

Russia’s Energy Minister Alexander Novak earlier on Monday said that the intergovernmental agreement on the Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline project was almost ready for signing.

"The document is almost ready, only some details are left (to be finished - TASS). We expect it to be signed within the International Energy Congress," he said.

According to Novak, the agreement stipulates the construction of two lines of the pipeline. The Minister said that the signing of the intergovernmental agreement is not related to the issue of granting a gas discount to Turkey. "The discount and prices for gas supplies on the whole are regulated by commercial agreements between particular commercial companies. While an intergovernmental agreement is a document between governments of two countries, which contains issues creating conditions for implementation of the project," Novak said.

According to the minister, the issue of gas supplies to Europe via the Turkish Stream is being developed now. "The issue is only being developed now and the South-Asian countries, which are interested in gas supplies, are discussing the issue inside Europe, among them Italy, Greece and other countries," he said.