Russia could give Greece funds ahead of pipe project

According to Greek government sources, Russia is considering giving Greece funds based on future profits it could earn from shipping Russian gas to Europe as part of a pipeline extension.

The extension to the Turkish Stream pipeline, which would take Russian gas from Turkey to Europe via Greece but has yet to be finalised, might also mean Athens would pay less for Russian gas. Moscow has yet to decide on any discount.

One of the Greek officials, both of whom spoke on condition of anonymity, said Greece would pay back the Russian prepayment after the pipeline started operating, without specifying a sum.

The other source estimated Greece could earn around 500 million euros ($540 million) a year in profits from participating in the Turkish Stream extension, adding that the prepayment sum was up to Russia.

Greece hopes its extension to Turkish Stream will start operating in 2019 and is seeking a discount of around 10% on Russian gas supplies, the source said.

Putin said of the project: "The new route will provide for European fuel needs and would allow Greece to become one of the main power distribution centers on the continent, which could help attract significant investment into the Greek economy," at a press conference.

The new route, currently called the Turkish Stream by Russian authorities, is planned to pass through Turkey and extend to the Turkish-Greek border. Russian gas giant Gazprom's CEO Alexey Miller said the EU has a few years to construct the necessary infrastructure to transport gas to the Greek-Turkish border.

There are reports that Greece would gladly participate in the Turkish Stream pipeline project as long as the project's name is called the Greek Stream when the pipeline is in Greek territory.

"We may not accept that the Greek segment of the pipeline is called Turkish Stream, but we believe this pipeline will upgrade our relations with Turkey. In that sense, we are ready to study the financing possibilities, always respecting the framework set by our membership in the European Union and, of course, the Greek framework," Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said, adding that Greece and Russia will discuss the project in detail in the near future.

He said the project could earn Greece "millions of euros" every year, and that Athens' Western creditors would also benefit should the Greek economy improve as a result of closer economic cooperation between the EU member state and Russia.

Edited from various sources by Elizabeth Corner

Sources: The Moscow Times, Daily Sabah

Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/business-news/10042015/russia-could-give-greece-funds-ahead-of-pipe-project/