Russia’s Gazprom is counting on its deep natural gas ties with Italy to revive plans aimed at bypassing Ukraine as a transit state for politically sensitive gas shipments to Europe. But whether the tactic works is another matter. Having tried and so far failed to bolster pipeline links with the continent through Bulgaria and Turkey, Gazprom is running out of options to secure its strategic entry point into southern Europe, and with it any chance of cutting Ukraine out of the picture this decade, industry and government sources say. Undeterred, last week it announced new plans with Italian utility Edison and Greece’s DEPA to supply natural gas along the seabed of the Black Sea into Greece and Italy, from where it could […]