Reuters: Hungary wants to complete South Stream stretch by 2017

Hungary could start construction on its stretch of the South Stream gas pipeline within six months and complete the project by 2017, the chief executive of the main Hungarian participant in the project told the daily Napi Gazdasag on Monday.

"We could put shovel to dirt as soon as six months from now but we would like to complete the Hungarian stretch by 2017," MVM CEO Csaba Baji said.

MVM owns 50 percent of the Hungarian stretch of the South Stream project, which is designed to ship Russian gas to Europe bypassing Ukraine. Hungary wants to speed up the project, but faces tough resistance from some European Union member states.

Hungary has supported the pipeline as well as other Russian energy projects, including a gas storage deal and the construction of two big reactors at the Paks nuclear plant in central Hungary.
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