Geoană: Nabucco could put Romania on the map in the 21st century

The Nabucco project could put Romania on the map of the 21st century, and it is the most important domestic and foreign policy of our country, Mircea Geoană (chairman of the Senate and of the Social Democrat Party) said yesterday, during his visit at the headquarters of Transgaz in Mediaş (county of Sibiu).

Mr. Geoană asked the head of Transgaz, Ioan Rusu, to come before the Parliament to present a plan that would present the legislative measures and the funding needed for the Nabucco project. "On behalf of the Romanian Senate and the Romanian Parliament, we have asked the general manager of Transgaz to present a detailed plan on the legal conditions required for the ratification of the Nabucco project that was recently signed in Ankara, on securing the multi-annual funding, on time for the debate of the budget for 2010 and the subsequent years, and on the funding needed. Before getting anything in return from the Nabucco project we have to make investments", Geoană said. The president of the Senate, accompanied by 31 senators of the PSD, while in Mediaş talked about "the opportunity of turning this company (Transgaz - ed. note) into a real champion of this European area, with political and economic backing". According to Mircea Geoană, Transgaz and Romgaz could become "major players in the region".

460 kilometers of the total 3,296 km of the Nabucco pipeline will cross Romania. Romanian company Transgaz will provide 417 million Euros in funding for the project, Prime-Minister Emil Boc recently said, after his return from the Ankara ceremony for the signing of the Nabucco agreement. The project will have an estimated value of 7.9 billion Euros, of which 70% will come from loans taken out by Nabucco International, and 30% from the company"s own resources.