Belarus President considers “Nord Stream” project unprofitable

The most convenient and shortest route of the energy transit from Russia to Europe is Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko underlined. “This is why I think that the Yamal-Europe pipeline should have been finished. One line has been built. Next to it, a second line should have been built. Moreover, the whole infrastructure was created for that. Europe could get an additional 25-30 billion cubic meters of gas,” he said.

“Even the transit through Ukraine is much more expensive. Not to mention the “Nord Stream”. That is an unprofitable project. But that is up to Russia. Russia has the right to manage and transit its resources they way it can in the present day circumstances. By the way, the “Nord Stream” project is causing a lot of problems,” the head of state noted.

At the same time the President believes that neither the “Nord Stream” nor “Southern Stream” projects can diminish the role of Belarus as a transit country as gas consumption in Europe is growing, and its production is sinking. According to Alexander Lukashenko, 30% of natural gas and about 75- 80% of crude oil is transited through Belarus.

Although Belarus plays a crucial role in the energy transit to Europe, it is not transit that makes our country attractive for Europeans, Alexander Lukashenko underlined. Lately, many representatives of some of Europe’s largest multinational companies have come to Belarus. And, despite the crisis, they are all ready to invest here.

“While watching TV programmes, I heard one major businessman saying that one can earn good money in Belarus. It is true. Order, stability, hard-working and highly-trained professionals can guarantee that the investment will pay back,” the President said.

Source