Ratings Agency Sceptical on Nabucco

Ratings agency Standard & Poor's remains sceptical about the Nabucco project, saying it has not factored the project into the financial implications for shareholder Transgaz given uncertainties.

The agency said that Nabucco held a risk for Transgaz, but failed to make any exact assessment of its impact.

"We consider Transgaz's potential participation in Nabucco as an additional material risk for its financial risk profile, albeit currently remote," a statement from the agency said.

The agency hinted that uncertainty surrounding the pipeline project might mean that the Nabucco project does not get off the ground, citing recent issues with the pipeline as the reason for not including it in a financial assessment for Transgaz.

"We do not factor into our base-case scenario the financial impact of Transgaz's participation in the large-scale Nabucco pipeline project, given the continuing uncertainties we see regarding gas supply sources and the financing structure of the project," it said.

Transgaz is one of six shareholders in the Nabucco project, which has been marred by both financial and practical complications which have raised doubts about the future of the project.