Reuters: OMV says Europe without Russian energy 'unrealistic'

It is unrealistic to think Europe could entirely wean itself off of Russian energy supplies, the chief executive of Austrian energy group OMV told a newspaper, calling for accelerated negotiations to approve the proposed South Stream gas pipeline.

Gerhard Roiss was speaking before Russian President Vladimir Putin visits Vienna on Tuesday, during which OMV and Russian partner Gazprom are to sign a contract on bringing the South Stream gas pipeline to Austria, as agreed in April.

"A third of our gas comes from Russia, in some regions even 100 percent," and in return Europe sends cars and machinery to Russia, Roiss told the WirtschaftsBlatt newspaper in an interview.

"One should not make this economic integration into a political football, because our economy and prosperity are based on it," he said in remarks published on Monday.
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