BUCHAREST, April 22 (Xinhua) -- Romania, Croatia and Serbia signed here on Tuesday an agreement on the setting up of a company to develop the Pan European Oil Pipeline (PEOP) linking the Romanian Black Sea port of Constanta to Trieste, Italy.

    "The project company will be registered in 45 days in London, where it will have its social headquarters," State Secretary at the Romanian Economy Ministry Viorel Palasca said.

    The company will have 2,100 shares carrying a par value of 100 pounds sterling. Romania will hold one third of the company's share capital, via the two companies appointed to represent Bucharest in the PEOP project, namely Conpet and Oil Terminal, which are to participate 35,000 pounds each.

    Serbia is represented by Transnafta company and Croatia by Janaf company, which are also to hold each a third of the shares.

    "We await the involvement in this company of Slovenia and Italy, which are yet to appoint the companies to represent them in this project. Italy, most likely, will give us an answer after the new government is made up, so that we have positive signals from them," Palasca said.

    He stressed that the role of the development company will be to promote the PEOP project, so as to attract investors.

    "We discussed with representatives for Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan and they said they are interested in being at least suppliers in this project, and even investors and participants," the Romanian official said.

    A feasibility study of the project has already been made in partnership with the World Bank. According to the survey, the capacity of the pipeline will be 60 million tones a year, it will be built during 2009-2013, with the funds required to complete the project ranging from 2.9 billion euros to 3.3 billion euros.

    Constanta-Trieste is one of several competing pipeline proposals for transporting oil from Kazakhstan via the Black Sea to European consumer markets. The project envisages construction of a pipeline from the Black Sea port of Constanta, passing through the territories of Romania, Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia and terminating at Trieste in Italy.

    Kazakhstan anticipates an output of 100 tons to 110 million tons of oil annually by 2010 and 150 million to 160 million tons annually by 2015 and thereafter. Such volumes necessitate multiple export outlets. Italy has the largest refining capacities of any European country. From Trieste, moreover, the proposed pipeline can be connected with the Trans-Alpine Pipeline Network, which links Italy with Austria and southern Germany.