Turkmenistan and Turkey signed framework cooperation agreement on gas deliveries

The talks between Turkmenistan and Turkish Presidents Gurbangulu Berdymohammadov and Abdulla Gyul, who is currently in Ashgabad on a state visit, ended yesterday with signing of the framework cooperation agreement on the natural gas deliveries from Turkmenistan to Turkey.

Therefore, the Turkish officials have once again confirmed that Turkey would like to diversify the gas sources from the Caspian Sea basin. Turkey started importing gas from the Shah-Deniz field in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea since July 3, 2007. According to the contract, Turkey has committed itself to import 3.3 billion cub.m. of gas a year from the Shah-Deniz Phase 1. However, Turkey has signed another commercial contract with Azerbaijan on the Shah-Deniz Phase 2. According to the contract, since 2018 Turkey has committed itself to import extra 6 billion cub.m. of gas from the Shah-Deniz field.

In 1997 Turkey signed the commercial contract with Ashgabad for delivery of 30 billion cub.m. of Turkmenistan gas. However, the contract has not been implemented, because of failure of the trans-Caspian project in early 2000, which was supposed to be built by the consortium operated by Shell.

At this stage the trans-Caspian project is considered by the experts as the most optimal way to deliver Turkmenistan gas to Europe via Turkey.

The Turkmenistan officials believe that agreement between Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan is enough for construction of the pipeline along the Caspian Sea bottom, because the project covers their territory. Azerbaijan has expressed readiness to provide its territory, transit possibilities and infrastructure for implementation of the project, as representatives of State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) stated.

However, construction of the trans-Caspian gas pipeline is hardly possible in the near future, because the Turkmenistan officials do not take any steps for the project implementation. President Berdymohammadov has made only political statements supporting the pipeline. But when it comes to signing any documents, even such as the memorandum with the European Union, the Turkmenistan officials move away from it for unknown reasons.

In addition, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan have always had "cold" political and economic relationships. Since July 2009 the Turkmenistan authorities regularly threatened Azerbaijan with the economic court and even demanded compensation for development of the offshore fields. Azerbaijan allegedly started implementation of the Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli bloc of fields in 1997 without Turkmenistan's consent, while the Caspian Sea legal status has not been solved.-0-