Hungary is fully committed to the construction of the Nabucco pipeline, but the final cost of the project remains unclear, National Development Minister Tamás Fellegi told journalists in London on Monday.

The estimated cost of the pipeline has risen from €7bn at the start to €24-26bn, Fellegi said before a conference on investments that leave a small carbon footprint.

The Nabucco pipeline is expected to bring gas from Central Asia to Europe, reducing the region’s energy dependence on Russia.

If the external situation does not deteriorate further, Hungary’s government believes the country’s economy could grow 1.5% in 2012, he said, answering a question.

When asked about sectoral “crisis taxes”, Fellegi conceded that “unconventional, unpleasant” government measures had reduced the degree of confidence between the government and the private sector, but said the “redistribution of the burdens of the crisis” was the only way keep the country from collapse.