The cold bed of the Black Sea is once again the focus of the state-controlled Russian energy giant Gazprom as its engineers plot to resuscitate its South Stream pipeline project using new routes. Early in December, Russian President Vladamir Putin abruptly cancelled plans for the project to connect to European networks, instead shifting direction and resources to Turkey. Meanwhile, neighboring Ukraine, whose pipelines South Stream meant to outflank, is charting its energy plans through winter while its citizens and cities are caught under fire in a conflict between the government and Russian-backed separatists.