Brussels, 27/02/2008 (Agence Europe) - During a visit to Budapest of current Russian Deputy Prime Minister, Chairman of the Gazprom Board of Directors and likely next President of Russia Dimitri Medvedev on Monday 25 February, Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany gave his backing to the proposed Russian-Italian Southstream gas pipeline. The 900km-long pipeline with its annual capacity of 30 billion cubic metres, a rival to the proposed Nabucco pipeline, will bring Russian gas to the EU through the Black Sea, then Bulgaria where the pipeline will divide into two, with one part going to Greece and Italy, and the other going also to Italy, but through Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Austria. The total cost of the Gazprom and Italian energy company ENI pipeline is projected to be €10 billion. Work is expected to begin in 2012 and the pipeline will come on stream in 2013. Budapest's support for Southstream further strengthens Gazprom's position, after backing for the project was given by Bulgaria (see EUROPE 9584) and, more recently, Serbia. Gyurcsany, who, after long hesitating, last September gave his support to the Nabucco project (see EUROPE 9502), agreed with Medvedev that the Southstream and Nabucco projects were not mutually exclusive. “It's in the interests of Hungary to have both pipelines crossing Hungarian territory,” Gyurcsany said on Monday. Under the terms of the agreement that he is due to sign in Moscow on Tuesday of next week, the Hungarian section of the Southstream pipeline will be owned by a 50-50 joint venture between the Hungarian government and Gazprom. (E.H.)