The European Commission will closely monitor the construction of a Baltic Sea gas pipeline to make sure it doesn't disturb the fragile environment, President Jose Manuel Barroso said Friday.

The pipeline will deliver Russian natural gas straight to Germany without passing through Poland or the Baltic states, who have reacted angrily to the project.

"It is a very important issue for the entire Baltic region," Barroso said. "The European Commission follows this project very carefully to make sure it is performed according to environmental regulations."

Lithuanian Prime Minister Gediminas Kirkilas underscored the dangers associated with the pipeline construction.

"The amounts of chemical weapons buried in the Baltic Sea during World War II and the scale of the possible outcome if anything should go wrong with this pipeline makes this issue very sensitive," he said. Sweden and Finland have expressed similar concerns.

Nord Stream AG, the Russian-German consortium building the 750-mile pipeline, is conducting an environmental impact study expected to be presented later this year.

Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus expressed hope that the European Commission would launch its own investigation of the pipeline's possible environmental impact.

During his meetings with Lithuanian officials, Barroso also welcomed the Baltic state's plans to build a new nuclear plant that would replace the existing plant in Ignalina.

Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs, a Latvian, has criticized the project as being more political than economic.

Barroso praised Lithuania for being the first member state to ratify the EU constitution, which is now in limbo after being voted down in France and the Netherlands.

Copyright 2007 AFX News Limited. All Rights Reserved.

Related Project
Nord Stream Pipeline
Facility Type: Pipeline Owner: Nord Stream AG
Scope: New Construction Location: Vyborg, Russia to Greifswald, Germany Russian Federation