Nord Stream has not been contacted by Ukraine to participate in a consortium on the construction of the gas pipeline and it would be up to the shareholders to evaluate such an offer, Sebastian Sass, head of Nord Stream's representation to the EU, told New Europe late on 20 January. He was responding to media reports that presidential candidate and Regions Party leader Viktor Yanukovich has said he is planning to initiate talks on Ukraine's participation in the Nord Stream consortium.

“If it is a question about whether or not a new shareholder would enter the consortium if it’s something our current shareholders would have to negotiate, not Nord Stream itself. But at the moment there is nothing ongoing we haven’t been contacted and anything else would be just speculation,” Sass told New Europe by phone. “The precondition for any such sort of evaluation there has to be an offer at the table and at the moment we have only learned from the media what reportedly has been said by Mr Yanukovich so it is too early to say plus it would be up to our shareholders and not Nord Stream as a company to evaluate,” Sass said.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin began to push Nord Stream and South Stream, pipeline projects to Europe designed to bypass Ukraine. A pro-Russian candidate, Yanukovich may be eager to earn some concessions from Moscow.

Meanwhile, Gazprom has started the construction of the compressor station, which will pump Nord Stream gas all through the Baltic Sea from Vyborg in Russia to Greifswald in Germany.
Sass told New Europe that this is under the auspices of Gazprom subsidiaries still who are constructing the compress station. “It is critical for Nord Stream because it will be the compressor station producing the pressure to transport gas through our pipeline,” he said. “According to all we know the construction of that is on time so that supports our schedule which would mean that we could start with taking the first part into operation in 2011 the second part in 2012.”