"Government will fall if South Stream deal is revised"

BRUSSELS Serbia is ready for the beginning of the pipeline construction which will open new jobs, Serbian Energy Minister Zorana Mihajlovic stated on Wednesday. She spoke in Brussels after attending a conference on the South Stream pipeline in the European Parliament. "Government will fall if South Stream deal is revised" “We intend to set up the consortium of Serbian companies which will be able to take part in all activities from construction to monitoring,” Mihajlovic told reporters after the meeting entitled “South Stream - Evolution of a Pipeline” held in the seat of the European Parliament. In her speech at the conference attended by CEO for exports in the Russian gas company Gazprom Alexander Medvedev and representatives of European institutions, Mihajlovic said that as many as 150,000 people might be employed, on the tasks of the South Stream pipeline construction, either directly or indirectly, and 3,500 of them would remain employed full-time on tasks of the pipeline maintenance. Asked to comment on http://www.b92.net/eng/news/business.php?yyyy=2013&mm=12&dd=05&nav_id=88560www.b92.net/eng/news/business.php that Gazprom operation is not in keeping with EU regulations in certain aspects, Mihajlovic said that this is a matter which Russia and the EU need to resolve among themselves. The Energy Agreement signed between Serbia and Russia in 2008 is different from the agreements signed by EU member countries because it also includes NIS and gas storage facilities, the minister said and added that this is a dispute between the Russian Energy Ministry and relevant EC directorate. “A small country like Serbia cannot be expected to revise the agreements with Gazprom if this was not required of any other country, not even an EU member like Bulgaria,” Mihajlovic said and underscored that the revision of the energy agreement would entail the fall of the Serbian government. Mihajlovic noted that the Serbian Energy Ministry is fully prepared for the forthcoming talks on EU accession. After the conference, Gazprom high official Aleksandr Siromyatin said that Serbia was very important for the South Stream pipeline because it constitutes the central pipeline intersection in the region. He underscored that he does not expect potential disputes between Gazprom and the EU to produce consequences relevant to Serbia because Serbia's talks on the signing of the third energy package with the EU should not begin before January 2015. "All problems should be resolved by that time," he said. Works began on Nov. 24 to build the South Stream leg through Serbia (Beta, file) Tanjug

"Government will fall if South Stream deal is revised"

“We intend to set up the consortium of Serbian companies which will be able to take part in all activities from construction to monitoring,” Mihajlović told reporters after the meeting entitled “South Stream - Evolution of a Pipeline” held in the seat of the European Parliament.

In her speech at the conference attended by CEO for exports in the Russian gas company Gazprom Alexander Medvedev and representatives of European institutions, Mihajlović said that as many as 150,000 people might be employed, on the tasks of the South Stream pipeline construction, either directly or indirectly, and 3,500 of them would remain employed full-time on tasks of the pipeline maintenance.

Asked to comment on http://www.b92.net/eng/news/business.php?yyyy=2013&mm=12&dd=05&nav_id=88560www.b92.net/eng/news/business.php that Gazprom operation is not in keeping with EU regulations in certain aspects, Mihajlović said that this is a matter which Russia and the EU need to resolve among themselves.

The Energy Agreement signed between Serbia and Russia in 2008 is different from the agreements signed by EU member countries because it also includes NIS and gas storage facilities, the minister said and added that this is a dispute between the Russian Energy Ministry and relevant EC directorate.

“A small country like Serbia cannot be expected to revise the agreements with Gazprom if this was not required of any other country, not even an EU member like Bulgaria,” Mihajlović said and underscored that the revision of the energy agreement would entail the fall of the Serbian government.

Mihajlović noted that the Serbian Energy Ministry is fully prepared for the forthcoming talks on EU accession.

After the conference, Gazprom high official Aleksandr Siromyatin said that Serbia was very important for the South Stream pipeline because it constitutes the central pipeline intersection in the region.

He underscored that he does not expect potential disputes between Gazprom and the EU to produce consequences relevant to Serbia because Serbia's talks on the signing of the third energy package with the EU should not begin before January 2015.

"All problems should be resolved by that time," he said.