Speaking to Mohammad Hassan Marican, president and chief executive of Petronas Carigali, Niyazov is reported to have asked him to consider joining in the construction of the gas pipeline that would follow the shore of Caspian and connect Turkmenistan with Europe via Russia and Ukraine. Turkmenistan, Russia, and Ukraine are examining the possibility of pipeline that would transport nearly 30bn cum/yr of gas annually to Ukraine and onward to Europe, as part of the effort to expand the gas transportation capacity of Turkmenistan. Petronas has been working in Turkmenistan since 1996. Under a production-sharing agreement, the Malaysian company is developing some blocks in the Caspian sector of Turkmenistan. It is also cooperating with Turkmenistan in the training of oil and gas professionals: students from Turkmenistan go annually to Petronas’ university in Malaysia.