RIA Novosti reported that the operator of the Nord Stream gas pipeline has submitted an application to the Swedish government for permission to lay its offshore pipeline system within the Swedish Exclusive Economic Zone.

The ambitious project to build a pipeline under the Baltic Sea to pump Russian gas to Germany is being developed by Russia's state controlled gas giant Gazprom and Germany's EON and BASF at an estimated cost of $12 billion.

Nord Stream AG in a statement said that "The company has handed in an application for the construction of the pipelines, including a technical description in accordance with the Swedish Continental Shelf Act.”

It said it had also filed an application for the service platform and an Environmental Impact Assessment report as well as a study outlining the potential impact of the pipelines on the environment. The company said it views the submission of the applications as "a starting point for an intensive dialogue with the Swedish government regarding the permission procedure, as well as the scope and method of the environmental studies."

Based on the application, Nord Stream will discuss all relevant issues with authorities, organizations and the general public "in an open and transparent manner, while fulfilling all the requirements of Swedish legislation to obtain the required permits to construct the important infrastructure project."

It said the project timetable foresees pipe laying works on the first line commencing during the summer of 2009 with completion scheduled for 2010 and that the first gas deliveries are expected to start in the spring of 2011, after completion of the test phase.