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Please make sure your browser supports JavaScript and cookies and that you are not blocking them from loading. For more information you can review our Terms of Service and Cookie Policy.</s>Gazprom said that construction of the offshore section of the TurkStream gas pipeline in the Black Sea has been completed by the Pioneering Spirit pipelaying vessel, a month ahead of its schedule.

The TurkStream gas pipeline laid between Russia and Turkey through the Black Sea, comprises two strings of 930km-long pipelines with each of them designed to transport up to 15.75 billion cubic meters of gas annually from Russian gas reserves.

The first string of the underwater gas pipeline will serve Turkish consumers, while the second string will transport gas to southern and southeastern Europe.

South Stream Transport, a subsidiary of Gazprom, holds the responsibility for the construction of the offshore section of the TurkStream gas pipeline. The company began its work in May 2017, which included laying of pipes in the Black Sea waters.

For both strings of the offshore section of the pipeline project, the construction contractor is Allseas Group, the owner of the Pioneering Spirit vessel. The two 32inch pipelines of the TurkStream gas pipeline enter the Black Sea waters near Anapa, on the Russian coast, and are connected ashore on the Turkish coast about 100km west of Istanbul, near Kiyikoy.

From Kiyikoy, a new underground pipeline will link the TurkStream gas pipeline to the existing network at Luleburgaz with the route to continue from there to the pipeline’s end point at the Turkish-European border.

Gazprom management committee chairman Alexey Miller revealed that construction of the inter-country gas pipeline is reaching its final stage with work well ahead of schedule.

Miller said: “The swift pace of this project can be attributed to the concerted and coordinated efforts of the project team. In late 2019, the gas pipeline will be brought into operation. It will become an additional guarantee of energy security in Turkey and the countries of southern and southeastern Europe”

As part of the project, construction of the receiving terminal is going on near Kiyikoy. Near Anapa, the landfall facilities have been built, and currently, pre-commissioning activities are being undertaken, which are expected to be wrapped up in 2018.</s>Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan have met in Istanbul to mark the completion of a key phase of a natural gas pipeline.

The two leaders are marking the finalization of the offshore part of TurkStream’s two lines that will carry natural gas from Russia to Turkey.

The lines are expected to supply Russian gas to European markets through Turkish territories. Together the two 930-kilometer lines via the Black Sea will carry 31.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually.

The two undersea lines will link Anapa in Russia to Kiyikoy in Turkey at a depth of some 2 kilometers.

Putin and Erdogan watched via video link in Istanbul as the last section was welded and laid into the sea by a vessel.

Putin said he believed TurkStream and the Akkuyu nuclear power station would become “clear symbols of the growing development of Russia and Turkey’s multi-faceted partnership.”

The onshore section of the pipeline in Turkey still needs to be built and TurkStream expects the gas to start being pumped at the end of 2019.

Meanwhile, Ankara and Moscow have agreed terms on the delivery of S-400 missiles in a deal that had alarmed NATO member Turkey’s Western allies.

Both leaders also reaffirmed their goal to lift annual bilateral trade volumes to US$100 billion, which Putin said was the same as between Russia and China.</s>Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan will participate in an official ceremony on Monday marking the completion of the offshore section of the Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline.

The offshore section of the pipeline, which is 930km (578 miles) and runs along the bottom of the Black Sea, is designed to deliver Russian gas to the Turkish market. Russia’s Gazprom began construction of the section in May 2017.

It will be continued by a 180km (112 miles) land transit line for gas supply to the countries of south and southeast Europe. The first deliveries are scheduled for the end of 2019.

The pipeline, which has two parts, is expected to carry 31.4 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year from Russia to Turkey. It is a major joint project between the two countries.

The deputy chairman of Gazprom’s board of directors, Alexander Medvedev, said earlier that in the near future the company would finally determine the route of the second line. According to him, two main options are being discussed in accordance with the procedures in the European Union and the European Commission. Medvedev cited Greece, Italy, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Hungary as potential markets.

Turkey is Gazprom’s second largest export market. Russian energy is currently supplied to the country through the Blue Stream pipeline and the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline. In 2017, Gazprom exported a record 29 billion cubic meters of gas to the Turkish market which is 17.3 percent more than in 2016.

READ MORE: Hungary wants Russia's Turkish Stream pipeline to be extended into Europe – Orban

In June, President Putin said an extension of the Turkish Stream pipeline (aka TurkStream) to Bulgaria had been agreed. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has asked Russia to extend the Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline to his country and further into Europe.

For more stories on economy & finance visit RT's business section</s>Construction of the offshore part of the TurkStream pipeline that will carry Russian gas across the Black Sea to Turkey has been completed, Russian gas producer Gazprom said on Monday.

TurkStream is part of Moscow’s efforts to bypass Ukraine as a gas transit route to Europe, which imports around a third of its gas needs from Gazprom.

“Projects of this kind and this project in particular are not directed against the interests of anyone. Projects of this kind are purely creative,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said as he and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan attended an official ceremony in Istanbul.

Work will now focus onshore and is on track to be completed by the end of 2019, he said.

Gazprom is building the TurkStream in two lines, each with a capacity of 15.75 billion cubic metres of gas per year. The first will supply Turkey and the second southern Europe.

Turkey is almost completely reliant on imports to meet its energy needs. A crippling currency crisis which has seen the lira plummet has increased costs, prompting energy companies to hike consumer prices.

Turkey’s state pipeline operator Botas will build the 69-km section of TurkStream which will carry natural gas from the coast to its distribution centre in Luleburgaz in northwestern Turkey, Energy Minister Fatih Donmez told private broadcaster NTV, adding he expected this to be completed in 2019.

A 145-km section of pipeline from the distribution centre to the border will be constructed by Botas and Gazprom, he said.</s>ISTANBUL (Reuters) - The construction of the offshore part of the TurkStream pipeline that will pump Russian gas to Turkey had been completed, a senior official at Russian gas giant Gazprom said on Monday.

Gazprom’s Oleg Aksyutin made the announcement on television after Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan met in Istanbul to mark the completion of the offshore leg of the pipeline.</s>The president of Russian was received by his Turkish counterpart on Monday to officially inaugurate the TurkStream undersea natural gas pipeline, which is expected to bring Russian gas through the Black Sea to Turkey and on to Europe starting next year.

Vladimir Putin joined Recep Tayyip Erdogan for a ceremony at the Istanbul Congress Center to mark the completion of the offshore section of the pipeline.</s>Construction of the offshore part of the TurkStream pipeline that will carry Russian gas across the Black Sea to Turkey has been completed, Russian gas producer Gazprom said on Monday.

TurkStream is part of Moscow's efforts to bypass Ukraine as a gas transit route to Europe, which imports around a third of its gas needs from Gazprom.

"Projects of this kind and this project in particular are not directed against the interests of anyone. Projects of this kind are purely creative," Russian President Vladimir Putin said as he and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan attended an official ceremony in Istanbul.

Work will now focus onshore and is on track to be completed by the end of 2019, he said.</s>Vladimir Putin joined Recep Tayyip Erdogan for a ceremony at the Istanbul Congress Centre to mark the completion of the offshore section of the pipeline

The Russian President was received by his Turkish counterpart on Monday to officially inaugurate the TurkStream undersea natural gas pipeline which is expected to bring Russian gas through the Black Sea to Turkey and on to Europe from next year.

Vladimir Putin joined Recep Tayyip Erdogan for a ceremony at the Istanbul Congress Centre to mark the completion of the offshore section of the pipeline, reports Efe news.

"We plan to transfer at least half of the natural gas transported through here to Europe," Erdogan asserted in a speech at the ceremony, adding it would carry 31.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually.

TurkStream is to give Russia a way to export gas to southern and eastern Europe that avoids going through Ukraine as Moscow has accused the pro-western government in Kiev of stealing natural gas destined for the European Union.

However, Putin seemed to downplay the Ukrainian factor in his remarks Monday, saying: "This is not a project contrary to the interests of third countries, it is to strengthen bilateral relations. It is to improve the conditions of economic collaboration between our two countries, it is beneficial for Turkey."

Moscow has told the EU that it must link its gas pipelines with the Greek-Turkish border to connect to the new pipeline, effectively ruling out gas transit through Ukrainian territory.

The Turkish route was born after Moscow cancelled the South Stream gas pipeline project in 2014, which was to supply Russian gas under the Black Sea through Bulgaria and on to central Europe.

Instead, Turkstream's offshore section will connect to the European part of Turkey, about 40 km south of the Bulgarian border.

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This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Except for the change in the headline, the story has been provided "AS-IS," "AS AVAILABLE, without any verification or editing from our side. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever.</s>President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Monday attended the completion ceremony of the sea section work for the TurkStream natural gas project on Monday.

TurkStream is a transit-free gas export pipeline that will stretch across the Black Sea from Russia to Turkey and further extend to Turkey's borders with neighboring European countries.

The first line is intended for gas supplies to Turkish consumers, while the second will supply gas to south and southeastern Europe.

Russian energy giant Gazprom is planning to start the construction of the overland section of the TurkStream's second gas pipeline in 2019. The project's spokeswoman on last Tuesday said the project will be completed by the end of 2019 as planned, according to Anadolu Agency (AA).

Natural gas transmission will take around 52 hours from Russia's Anapa to the destination in Turkey, at Kıyıköy located in the Kırklareli province in northwestern Turkey, according to the officials.

The control room where natural gas transmission will be monitored will be located at the headquarters of the TurkStream project company in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

According to the information provided by the TurkStream authorities, the project has been designed to operate for at least 50 years.

The first line reached the Turkish shore at the end of April after 930 kilometers of deepwater offshore pipe laying from Anapa, Russia to Kıyıköy, Turkey.

TurkStream's first line will carry 15.75 bcm of natural gas to Turkey. The project will have a total throughput capacity of 31.5 billion cubic meters with the second line that will go to Europe.

Russia is reportedly considering options for extending the pipeline through Bulgaria and Serbia or through Greece and Italy.
The 930-kilometre (580 mi) offshore section of the TurkStream gas pipeline, between Russia and Turkey, is completed.