Turkey ratifies gas deal with Russia.
Apr. 3, 1998 The Turkish parliament has ratified an inter-governmental accord with Russia on gas exports to Turkey
through a Black Sea bottom pipeline, a Blue Stream project.
The deal was reached during the December visit to Turkey of outgoing Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin.
Under the contract, Russia is to export to Turkey 30 billion cubic metres of natural gas, which is to make Turkey the
second-largest importer of Russian gas after Germany by 2000.
The gas pipeline will have three stretches. Its 373 km Izobilmnoye-Dzhubga segment and 396 km Dhubga-Samsun bottom
will run in the Russian territory.
A 444 km bottom stretch is to link Turkey's Samsun and Ankara.
The gas pipeline, to be completed within two years, will be world-deepest. Some of its segments will lie at a 2 km
depth.
The pipeline is to pump 3 bn cm of gas to Turkey by 2000.
At present, Russia's gas exports to Turkey come through a western route traversing Ukraine, Moldavia, Romania and
Bulgaria.
