Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller late on Thursday said Russia plans to boost gas exports via the Black Sea and Türkiye, adding that talks on the proposals could start as soon as next week.
Miller’s remarks come after Russian President Vladimir Putin touted Türkiye earlier this week as the best route for redirecting gas supplies to the European Union after Nord Stream pipeline leaks. He proposed to set up a gas hub in Türkiye.
Miller said that Russia will start “concrete” talks with Türkiye next week on the proposals.
Russia could boost gas supplies to Türkiye by constructing new pipelines in parallel to the currently operational TurkStream pipeline via the Black Sea, he told Russian state TV Channel One. He added that the project design documentation has already been prepared.
Miller said the gas supplies via the Black Sea may reach 63 billion cubic meters (bcm) per year. That’s compared to 55 bcm of each of Nord Stream’s capabilities and 31.5 bcm of TurkStream’s transport capacity.
Both Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines, which were built to transport gas from Russia to Germany via the bed of the Baltic Sea, were damaged last month, spewing out a large amount of gas.
Investigation into the incidents is underway. Russia called it an “act of international terrorism,” pointing the finger at the West, while the European Union called it a “sabotage.”
Both pipelines, stretching more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) under the sea, were idle at the time of the ruptures.
Miller said a big section of the damaged Nord Stream pipelines might need to be replaced.
“Experts say that in order to restore work after such a terrorist act, it is necessary to actually cut off a very large piece of pipe, at a great distance, and in fact build a new section on this section,” he said.
“And in order to restore integrity, it must be raised, this pipe. And you understand, it is one thing when the pipe is hollow, yes, and another thing when it is filled with seawater for hundreds of kilometers.”
On Wednesday, Miller said repairs to the damaged Nord Stream pipelines would take more than one year.
Putin this week said Russia had thwarted a planned attack against one of the sections of the TurkStream pipeline, without providing evidence or details.
Carrying natural gas from Russia to Türkiye and further into Europe, the TurkStream was formally launched in January 2020.
The pipeline, which allows Moscow to bypass Ukraine as a transit route to Europe, carries Russian gas to Southern Europe through the Black Sea and Türkiye.
It consists of two 930-kilometer offshore lines and two separate onshore lines that are 142 and 70 kilometers long. The first line with a capacity of 15.75 bcm is designated for supplies to Türkiye’s domestic customers. The downlink to Türkiye carries gas to several European countries, including Serbia and Hungary.
