Roiss: MOL Still Important to Nabucco

CEO of OMV, Gerhard Roiss has said that MOL remains an important contributor to the Nabucco pipeline project, despite MOL's statement last month that it was prepared to sell its shares in the consortium.

In an interview with Austrian newspaper Wirtschaftsblatt, which was published today, Mr. Roiss said the consortium had received no written confirmation that MOL intended to leave the project.

"I welcome MOL as an important partner in the consortium," he said. "There is no written communication that indicates it is leaving (the consortium)."

MOL, which is one of six shareholders in the consortium each holding a 16.67 per cent stake, last month said that it was unwilling to contribute any more financing to the project and that it had reservations about and frustrations with the project.

"Today nobody talks about that old big Nabucco dream that for God knows how much, we don't even know this number, we bring gas from the Caspian region to ... neighbouring Austria," CEO Zsolt Hernadi told shareholders last month.  "Who will provide gas into the pipeline, under what conditions it will be shipped, what will be the transit conditions ... there is no answer. There has not been an answer for over 10 years."

Mr. Hernadi said that the company was open to selling its shares to indicate just how serious these reservations are.

However, in the interview with Wirtschaftsblatt, Mr. Roiss said that, even if MOL does withdraw, the construction of the pipeline will be unaffected.

"There is an intergovernmental agreement that has been signed by all of the countries in the consortium," he said. "It binds them to construction of the pipeline. I assume that in Europe what has been signed is respected."