Algeria’s Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal has said that the country is ready to relaunch the $3bn Galsi gas pipeline project.

“This is a project that we intend to relaunch as part of this new vision of security for Italy and Europe through alternative sources of energy supply from Algeria,” he was quoted as saying on 27 May by the UK-based news agency Reuters.

His statement comes days before the final investment decision (Fid) for the project is due to be made on 31 May.

Previously, it was hoped that the decision would be made at a shareholder meeting on 30 November 2014, but this was delayed as the company behind the project waited for approvals from authorities in Tuscany and a decree from the Italian Ministry of Economic Development.

The company behind the project, also named Galsi, says bids have already been submitted for procurement contracts, including for offshore line-pipe supply and offshore pipe-lay.

Bids have also been submitted for an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for a compression station in Algeria.

Galsi says more tenders will be issued immediately after the Fid, if a positive decision is made.

The Galsi project has been given  a boost by the decision by Russian President Vladimir Putin to drop plans for the proposed South Stream project, a pipeline with an annual capacity of 63 billion cubic metres (cm) that was due to run under the Black Sea into southern and central Europe.

Analysts say Europe may be keen to secure new gas supply routes in the wake of South Stream’s failure, and this could make a positive FID decision.

Over recent years the Galsi pipeline has seen significant delays.

It was originally due for completion in 2009, but there were difficulties in obtaining authorisation for the pipeline route and landing points as well as protracted intergovernmental negotiations.

Galsi was created in 2003 and is owned by several stakeholders:

• Sonatrach (Algeria) 41.6 per cent
• Edison (Italy) 20.8 per cent
• Enel (Italy) 15.6 per cent
• Hera (Italy) 10.4 per cent
• The region of Sardinia 11.6 per cent

The pipeline will have an annual capacity of 8 billion cm and sections will be laid at a depth of 2,885 metres.

The 520-kilometre-long Italian section of the pipeline will account for about two-thirds of the cost, with the 310km section between Cagliari and El-Kala on the Algerian coast making up the balance.