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KPMG: Romania may become regional hug of natural gas

Romania stands chances of becoming a regional hub for the trade in natural gas, once the sweeping infrastructure projects that will ensure access to the Caspian sources of hydrocarbons, such as Nabucco, will have been carried out, Peter Kiss, consultant partner within the division of energy and utilities for Central and Eastern Europe of consulting and audit company KPMG told daily Business Standard.

Peter Kiss said that whether Nabucco pipeline will cross Romania, the country might become a hub for the trade in natural gas. Another project is NETS (New European Transport System) initiated by Hungarian group MOL in December one year ago, which is set to connect Romania to the infrastructure of the countries in the region. ‘'In order to become a hub of natural gas, certain conditions have to be met: to trade big volumes, to have different sources of supply and to draw companies from the region,'' explained the KPMG representative.

Inturn, Balazs Sandor, official of FGSZ company, Hungarian operator of natural gas transport, part of MOL group told the same daily that the ever more complex development of the network of natural gas in the region is the key element for the establishment of a new commercial center of natural gas.

Balasz Sandor said the advantages which a country may have from the outlook of a regional center for the trade in natural gas has are higher revenues prompted by the transport activity, higher security of the system and lower prices for natural gas, following the competition. According to him, Hungary is trying to set a system, which will help it in the future to become a hub of natural gas. 'The storage capacity is essential, as well as the access to various sources of supply,'' said the FGSZ official.

Experts deem that, at present, the regional market of natural gas is not liquid because the constraints which relate to the access to resources, but also to infrastructure. According to Balazs Sandor, once the interconnections, the small ones, such as the one between Hungary and Romania on Arad (western Romania)-Szeged (Hungary) route, but also the big-size ones, such as Nabucco, will be established, the activity of trading will develop very fast.

The first problem which has to be solved, however, is the establishment of joint regulations pertaining to the natural gas transport system. 'It is difficult to adjust the legislative provisions, but we have started the New European Transport System project. The unification of system tariffs will streamline access to financing resources, because it is easier to finance projects with several companies supporting you, it is easier for developing,'' said the FGSZ official.

According to experts, considering Russia could no longer meet the rise in demand for natural gas, the access to Caspian resources of hydrocarbons will be crucial. The states in the region are, however, too small to cope by themselves with the global competition for the access to natural gas resources, so that they have to act at regional level as a sole player.

'The fight for the Caspian resources explains why the New European Transport System or Nabucco or other joint drives are necessary. I honestly believe that Central and Eastern Europe can be successful if we act together,'' Benjamin Lakatos, manager of MOL Gas, the relevant division of MOL Group told daily Business Standard.

 

Sursa: http://www.rompress.ro

Tags: natural system which resources transport access become regional kpmg romania

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