Castoro Sei departs Bulgarian port to prepare for laying Turkish Stream gas pipeline
MOSCOW. July 1 (Interfax) - Saipem pipelaying vessel Castoro Sei has departed the port of Burgas, Bulgaria, after a six-month layover there, according to global positioning system data for ships at sea.
The Castoro Sea set a course for Russian territorial waters to prepare for laying the undersea segment of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline, a Gazprom spokesman told Interfax.
It was reported earlier that Castoro Sei would begin laying the pipeline in shallow waters off the Russian coast.
Gazprom management thought that the pipe laying might begin in the first 10 days of June, but it has proven impossible to adhere to that timetable, due to bureaucratic hurdles on the Russian side, a source familiar with the situation told Interfax.
In deep waters, the pipeline will be laid by another vessel, Saipem 7000. It remains in Burgas Bay. Saipem 7000 had departed the port on June 22 to refuel and has since returned.
Gazprom hired Saipem's pipelaying fleet to build the South Stream gas pipeline, which was subsequently canceled.
Saipem reported it received notification of a suspension of vessel operations on December 4, 2014, which was lifted on May 8, 2015, that is, 156 days later. Several market participants told Interfax that Saipem charged $1.8 million for each day of the suspension. In other words, the cost of the entire suspension might total $280 million.