Gazprom wins again

THE COURTSHIP of Italy's Eni and Russia's Gazprom intensified at the end of June with a pipeline deal to bring natural gas across the Black Sea from Russia into Europe. For Gazprom, the agreement seals a number of strategic objectives. It opens a new route for Russian gas to Europe that skips transit countries, drives yet another – perhaps the last – nail into the coffin of the Nabucco pipeline and ties one of the EU's largest energy companies even more closely to Gazprom's own interests. For now, Eni's agreement with Gazprom is for a feasibility study into the line. The Italian firm says its engineering unit, Saipem, has already begun technical research. But the details offered by Eni and G