Moscow  - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin believes that the South Stream pipeline, which would transport Russian gas to Europe via the Black Sea, could be ready earlier than planned, the Interfax news agency reported Thursday.

Putin is meeting in St Petersburg with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, whose country would be one of the end points for the supply line.

Putin said that he saw "positive movement" from the Turkish government on work for the pipeline, meaning that the project could be delivered earlier than the scheduled
2013 date.

Earlier this week Russia, Turkey and Italy agreed upon a deal to carry out geological exploration work in the Black Sea.

South Stream is seen as a rival to the Nabucco pipeline, which some European leaders favour since that project does not rely on Russian gas.

Payment disputes between Russia and Ukraine, through which much of Russian gas destined for Europe flows, have blocked gas shipments to Europe in the past, making some question Russian reliability.

Bypassing Ukraine with the South Stream pipeline should resolve that problem, argue Russian officials. Nonetheless, some European leaders would like an alternate, worrying that they are too dependent on Russia, which provides the bulk of gas for European consumption.(dpa)