PARIS, Nov 26 (Reuters) - France's GDF Suez is close to signing a deal with Russian gas monopoly Gazprom on taking a 9 percent stake in the Nord Stream gas pipeline, a source close to the situation said on Thursday.
GDF Suez has been in talks for over a year to take a stake in the pipeline being built by Gazprom and German utility E.ON , which will carry 55 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas annually from Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea from 2012.
"We are on the verge of signing a contract but it will not be tomorrow," the source said.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will make an official visit to France from Nov. 26 to Nov. 27, during which Gazprom is expected to sign a Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) on the South Stream gas pipeline.

(Reporting by Muriel Boselli, editing by Will Waterman) Keywords: GDFSUEZ GAZPROM/PIPELINE (muriel.boselli@reuters.com; +33 1 4949 5270; Reuters Messaging: muriel.boselli.reuters.com@reuters.net )

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