Negotiations are currently under way with eight major European companies that have declared interest in participation in the Nabucco gas pipeline project. Agreement will probably be reached with up to two companies in view of accelerating the implementation of the project, while at the same time the number of participating companies will not become too large.

Partners on this project include gas companies Botas of Turkey, Bulgargaz of Bulgaria, Transgaz of Romania, MOL of Hungary and OMV Gas of Austria, which are all joined in the consortium Nabucco for the construction of this transcontinental gas pipeline from the Caspian region and the Middle East to Central and Western Europe.

The project feasibility study was completed and accepted last year, and its route has been determined, as well as the main technical parameters of the gas infrastructure on the territories of the transit countries.

The future Nabucco pipeline will be 3 300 km long, with a capacity of between 25 500 million and 31 000 million cubic meters a year. On Bulgarian territory, the main infrastructure passes though eight regions and 22 municipalities, crossing seven railway lines, three highways, many other roads and six large rivers, as well as the Danube. The length of the pipeline on Bulgarian territory will be 400 km and investments stand at 450 million euro.

The phases of project implementation provide for its development from 2006 to 2008, construction between 2008 and 2011 and putting it into operation as of 2011.