Russia to seal Central Asian gas pipeline deal

By Tanya Mosolova

MOSCOW, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Russia, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan are to sign a deal on Thursday on building a pipeline that will allow Moscow to keep Central Asian gas flows to the West under its control, sources and analysts said on Wednesday.

An intergovernmental agreement to build a pipeline to take Turkmen gas to Russia is expected to be signed during a meeting between the Russian and Kazakh presidents, Vladimir Putin and Nursultan Nazarbayev, a Russian government source said.

The practical details have yet to be decided about how Turkmen President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, who is not planning to come to Moscow for talks, will enter the three-sided deal on Thursday.

"This agreement is a major document... They (the states involved) may continue discussing details later, but it is very unlikely that a project would be scrapped after an intergovernmental agreement is signed," the source said.

Russia's gas export monopoly Gazprom (GAZP.MM), which has steered the pipeline project, declined to comment.

Gazprom buys the bulk of Turkmen gas production, or around 50 billion cubic metres a year, as well as volumes from Kazakhstan, for re-export to Ukraine and the West.

The new pipeline, known as the Caspian Gas Pipeline, is designed to boost the flows of Central Asian gas via Russia and pass close to the Caspian Sea.

The intergovernmental agreement, which had been initially planned for September, has been delayed and analysts said they thought Moscow and Turkmenistan were struggling to agree on prices for existing gas supplies.