The legal framework for the Nabucco Pipeline has been finalised with the signing – in Kayseri, Turkey – of the Project Support Agreements between Nabucco Gas Pipeline International GmbH and the responsible ministries of the five transit countries – Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Turkey.

The Nabucco Pipeline is a 3,900 km, 56 inch diameter pipeline which will directly connect the Caspian region and the Middle East to the European consumer markets. The pipeline will link the eastern border of Turkey, to Baumgarten in Austria via Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary.

The Project Support Agreements (PSAs) are bilateral, legal agreements specific to and between the Nabucco companies and the government of each transit country.

The main elements of the PSAs are:

• The affirmation of an advantageous regulatory transit regime under European Union and Turkish energy law;
• The protection of the Nabucco Pipeline from potential discriminatory changes in the law;and,
• Support for legislative and administrative actions for the further implementation of the project.

The PSAs also mark a commitment by each government to support the project. Together with the Intergovernmental Agreement, the PSAs are a necessary prerequisite for the successful financing of the project.