A pipeline race between Russia and the EU and the United States has intensified amid fears of energy shortages following the turmoil in North African states that produce natural gas.

With the European market standing to lose up to 10 billion cubic metres of gas a year because of the conflict in Libya – and up to 50 billion more if the conflict spills into neighbouring Algeria – interest is growing in Russia’s South Stream pipeline project, with Germany’s BASF bringing $2bn (£1.2bn) on board last week.

“Political instability in Africa and the Middle East, along with fears that a nuclear meltdown in Japan might prompt national governments in Europe to curb their nuclear programmes, makes Gazprom’s South Stream increasingly attractive,” says Yevgenia Dyshlyuk, an analyst with the