WARSAW. JUNE 20. INTERFAX CENTRAL EUROPE - Poland's gas monopolist,
PGNiG, joined the Norwegian-Swedish Skanled consortium, which will build a gas pipeline from Norway to Sweden and Denmark, the company stated Wednesday.
PGNiG received a 15% stake in the consortium.
"After purchasing stakes in fields on the Norwegian shelf and signing a letter of intent with Energinet.dk on construction of the Baltic Pipe gas pipeline, which is to link the Polish and the Danish gas pipeline systems,
PGNiG's participation in the Skanled consortium is another important step toward natural gas supplies from Scandinavia to Poland," the company's management board was quoted in the statement.
PGNiG said in the statement that joining the consortium will allow Poland to diversify gas supplies to Poland and will open new trade opportunities significant for the European gas market.
As a new member of the consortium,
PGNiG is obliged to participate in the costs of the second stage of the project which includes financing project analysis.
PGNiG will have to invest the equivalent of PLN 500,000. The second stage, which is currently getting under way, will last until October 2009.
In the third stage of the project
PGNiG will have to invest no more than PLN 10 mln, and the amount will be returned to
PGNiG if the company withdraws from the project, which will be forwarded to the investment stage.
Participation in the fourth stage depends on a decision by each of the consortium members.
PGNiG's potential financial obligations in this stage are estimated at some PLN 500 mln.
"Joining the consortium gives
PGNiG the right [to influence the decision making process] in all issues, including those concerning booking pipeline capacity and gaining access to project documentation,"
PGNiG said.