ISTANBUL (Sputnik) — A Russian company will own rights for both underwater legs of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline connecting Russia and Turkey via the Black Sea, Russia's Energy Minister Alexander Novak said Monday.
"The pipeline will have two legs with annual capacity of 15.75 billion cubic meters each," Novak told reporters in Istanbul.
"A Russian company will build both underwater legs and will own them, while the land stretch of the first leg will be owned by the Turkish customers and the land stretch of the second leg will be controlled by a joint venture," Novak stressed.
The Turkish Stream project was announced in the end of 2014 by Russian President Vladimir Putin on his state visit to Turkey. The pipeline is expected to run below the Black Sea from Russia to Turkey and continue to a hub on the Turkish-Greek border, from where the gas could be transferred to other European countries.
In November 2015, the Turkish Stream project was suspended after a Russian Su-24 aircraft was downed by a Turkish F-16 fighter in Syria. In June, following Turkey's apology to Russia for the November incident, the sides began a reconciliation process.
In late September, Russia's Gazprom said it had received a majority of permits from Ankara on the construction of the pipeline.
