Category: Southern Caucasus

BP Azerbaijan head: Gas agreements between Azerbaijan and Turkey to help open Southern Gas Corridor to Europe

Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct.28 / Trend E.Ismayilov /

The Republic of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Turkey have signed a number of key gas export related agreements to enable Turkey to buy gas from Azerbaijan and to transit Azerbaijan gas through Turkey to Europe, official website of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) reports.

According to the report, the documents signed in Izmir (Turkey) on Tuesday, October 25, included an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between the Government of Azerbaijan and the Government of Turkey, Gas Sales Agreements between SOCAR and BOTAS and also between the Azerbaijan Gas Supply Company (AGSC) and BOTAS International Limited (BIL), a Gas Transit Agreement between SOCAR and BOTAS and a Framework Agreement (FA) setting the general terms and conditions for transit of gas sourced from Azerbaijan through the territory of Turkey. The IGA and FA contemplate transit through Turkey either via an upgrade to the existing BOTAS transmission network or via the development of a new-build pipeline across Turkey.

The execution of the documents was witnessed by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan H.E. Ilham Aliyev and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The documents were signed by the Minister of Industry and Energy of Azerbaijan Natig Aliyev and the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Turkey Taner Yildiz, as well as SOCAR President Rovnag Abdullayev, the President for the Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey Region of BP and the Operator of Shah Deniz field, Rashid Javanshir and General Manager of BOTAS Fazil Senel.

The agreements provide a legal framework to regulate the sale of Shah Deniz gas to Turkey and its transportation to European markets through Turkey, the website reports.

“We are pleased to finalise the signing of these key agreements between Azerbaijan and Turkey that will lead to Shah Deniz full field development and delivery of Stage 2 gas from Azerbaijan’s giant field in the Caspian Sea to Turkey and European markets. This is a significant step that has been achieved by the two Governments with support from all parties involved including the Shah Deniz consortium. We believe the success of all efforts that have brought us to today’s achievement lies in the close partnership among the three key parties – the Government of Azerbaijan, the Government of Turkey and the Shah Deniz consortium. This partnership has been a key element in everything accomplished so far and will continue to be a driving force to move Shah Deniz to the stage when it will safely and reliably supply Azerbaijan gas to Turkey and Europe,” SOCAR President Rovnag Abdullayev said.

Speaking on behalf of the Shah Deniz consortium Rashid Javanshir, President for the Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey Region of BP, said: “We welcome the successful signing of the Shah Deniz gas sales and transit agreements, and the Inter-Governmental Agreement between Azerbaijan and Turkey. We believe these agreements will help open a Southern Gas Corridor to Europe and link Azerbaijan and Turkey with yet another strategic partnership. They will support the continued development of Shah Deniz 2 project towards a final investment decision and development of Turkey as an energy hub for Europe. The signing of these agreements will also allow Shah Deniz to proceed with its European pipeline selection process, and to confirm gas sales agreements with potential customers. ‪

On behalf of the co-venturers we would like to congratulate Azerbaijan and Turkey on reaching these extremely important agreements”.

Shah Deniz Stage 2, or Full Field Development (FFD), is a giant project that will bring gas from Azerbaijan to Europe and Turkey. This will increase gas supply and energy security to European markets through the opening of the new Southern Gas Corridor.

The project is expected to add a further 16 billion cubic meters per year (bcma) of gas production to the approximately 9 bcma from Shah Deniz Stage 1. “It is one of the largest gas development projects anywhere in the world,” the website reports.

Plans for the project include two new bridge-linked offshore platforms; 26 subsea wells to be drilled with 2 semi-submersible rigs; 500 km of subsea pipelines built at up to 550m water depth; additional export capacity in Azerbaijan and Georgia; expansion of the Sangachal Terminal.

“Proposals for the transportation of gas from the Caspian Sea to Europe are now being evaluated by the Shah Deniz consortium with an award expected around the end of the year,” the report says.

Proposals were submitted by October 1 from Nabucco, Trans-Adriatic Pipeline and IGI-Poseidon.

In addition, the Shah Deniz project team are also evaluating a fourth potential export option which would transport gas to markets in South-Eastern Europe through a system of regional existing and future interconnector infrastructure.

The partners in Shah Deniz are: BP Operator (25.5 per cent), Statoil (25.5 per cent), SOCAR (10 per cent), Total (10 per cent), Lukoil (10 per cent), NICO (10 per cent) and TPAO (9 per cent).

via BP Azerbaijan head: Gas agreements between Azerbaijan and Turkey to help open Southern Gas Corridor to Europe – Trend.

October 29, 2011
Turkey plans to take action against Armenian plant

Ali Kayalar

Energy Minister Taner Yıldız says Turkey’s debut nuclear plant will be the strongest building in the country. AA photo.

Turkey’s Energy Minister Taner Yıldız has said he ordered the country’s nuclear authority to measure radioactivity in the east after the deadly earthquake in Van province for fear of leaks from a nuclear plant in Armenia.

“I asked the Turkish Atomic Energy Authority to immediately conduct tests,” Yıldız told a group of journalists in Ankara while speaking at a reception to mark the 50th anniversary of the Hürriyet Daily News.

Turkey is preparing to take legal action against all superannuated nuclear power plants across the world, including Metzamor in Armenia, the minister said.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will receive from Turkey complaints about dozens of nuclear plants across the world that have already exceed an age of 40, Yıldız said.

“Some countries are announcing that they are putting an end to nuclear power and closing superannuated plants, but they are continuing to build new ones,” he said. “This is not right.”

However, the minister declined to specify any country by name.

Siemens, Germany’s biggest nuclear energy company, was turning the page on nuclear energy, the group’s chief executive told the Der Spiegel weekly in September.

The government in Germany had earlier announced it will withdraw from nuclear energy after the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster in Japan caused by an earthquake and tsunami on March 11 that took more than 20,000 lives.

Turkey’s to-be-built nuclear plant near the town of Akkuyu in the southern province of Akkuyu would be “the strongest building in the country,” Yıldız said. As risk grows, security measures grow too, he said.

“We will invest some $20 billion there. It will become an important part of the overall energy system and we will still bear risks. Sorry, but neither the state nor the private sector would take such a risk. One should be crazy, otherwise. We will not let it happen. No need to worry about it.”

Russian state-owned nuclear power company ROSATOM is the contractor for the project.

The country plans two more power plants, one in the northern province of Sinop and another in the Thracian region but talks with contractors for these projects were interrupted by the Fukushima accident.

via Turkey plans to take action against Armenian plant – Hurriyet Daily News.

October 28, 2011
Armenia To Send Relief Aid To Turkey

Turkey — Earthquake survivors stand in front of a damaged building in Ercis, 26Oct2011

27.10.2011

Armenia said on Thursday that it will send a planeload of humanitarian aid to survivors of a powerful earthquake in southeastern Turkey that killed more than 500 people and left thousands of others homeless.

The Armenian Ministry of Emergency Situations announced that a transport plane hired by it will deliver 40 tons of tents, sleeping bags, blankets and other aid to the western Turkish city of Izmir on Friday.

A ministry statement said that the Turkish government requested such assistance through the Turkish Red Crescent Society and NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Center.

The Armenian government offered to send relief aid and rescuers immediately after the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck the area around the Turkish city of Van on Sunday. President Serzh Sarkisian reiterated the offer in a phone call with his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul the following day.

With the epicenter of the quake located only 150 kilometers south of the Turkish-Armenian border, strong and unusually long tremors were also felt in much of Armenia. But they caused no devastation.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday thanked foreign nations offering help, including Armenia and Israel, but said Turkey can cope with the disaster by itself.

Erdogan’s government has since faced growing accusations of neglect or

ineptitude from scores of earthquake survivors whose homes were destroyed or seriously damaged by the quake.

Reports from the disaster zone spoke on Thursday of an acute shortage of tents badly needed by thousands of people sleeping in the open in freezing temperatures.

Answering Turkey’s call for help to supply tents, prefabricated housing and containers, foreign aid began pouring in with the first planeloads landing from France, Ukraine and Israel, Reuters news agency reported. Both Israel and Armenia have poor relations with Turkey.

via Armenia To Send Relief Aid To Turkey.

October 28, 2011
Istanbul to host conference on Armenia-Turkey relations

PanARMENIAN.Net – On October 29-30, Istanbul will host a conference titled Normalization of Armenian-Turkish Relations: Revival Perspectives, according to Regional Studies Center (RSC) director.

As Richard Giragosian told a news conference in Yerevan, the conference will focus on Armenia-Turkey rapprochement, prospects of furthering of bilateral ties, development dynamics of political situation in South Caucasus.

The conference is organized by Middle East Technical University and TOBB University of Economics and Technology and supported by the Center for Strategic Studies of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey.

via Istanbul to host conference on Armenia-Turkey relations – PanARMENIAN.Net.

October 28, 2011
Azerbaijan supports Turkey in the fight against terrorism

Izmir. Mais Alizadeh-APA. The first meeting of the Turkey-Azerbaijan High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council has taken place in Izmir, Turkey.

Speaking at a press conference following the meeting, the Turkish Primer Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan thanked Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev for the first assistance after the earthquake in Van.

“Today we witnessed very important events. It’s about $5 billion investment. From this investment will benefit both Turkey and Azerbaijan”, – Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

Turkish Primer Minster said that the relations between the two countries entered a new phase and these relations will become even stronger.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that they want “a speedy and just solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict”. “A just solution to the problem” will lead to a great development in the region. This is not only Azerbaijan’s problem but also problem if Turkey and the Turkic world, in general”.

Turkish Prime Minister noted that the second meeting of the Turkey-Azerbaijan High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council will be held in Azerbaijan, next year and expressed hope for a full agenda of this meeting.

Speaking at a press conference, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev expressed his condolences to the Turkish people, on behalf of the Azerbaijani people, in connection with the terrible earthquake. “Today the Azerbaijani people is close to the Turkish people in such day. 20 years of our independence – years of the Turkey-Azerbaijan brotherhood. Turkey always has been close to Azerbaijan in bad days. Turkey-Azerbaijan unity based on historical grounds, constantly gaining strength. Today Turkey and Azerbaijan are close in all matters, support each other, implement joint projects and take initiatives”, – Azerbaijani President said.

”The agreements reached at the meeting of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council, and signed documents are recommendations for the future. From now, our cooperation in all fields will be deepened. Azerbaijan has always been close with Turkey in dealing with terrorism, one of the main problems of this country. Azerbaijan fully supports Turkey in its just struggle against terrorism”, – President Ilham Aliyev said.

via APA – Azerbaijani President: Azerbaijan supports Turkey in the fight against terrorism.

October 27, 2011
Earthquake in Turkey did not and could not harm the Armenian NPP – ministry of emergency situations

YEREVAN, October 24. /ARKA/. A strong earthquake that took place yesterday in Turkey did not and could not cause any damage to the Armenian nuclear power plant (ANPP), said in the statement posted on the website of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Armenia.

According to the press-release, magnitude of the earthquake in Turkey near the city Van was 9-10 and the distance of the Armenian ANPP from the epicenter was about 160 km.

“In the territory of ANPP magnitude of the earthquake was three points and there has not and could not be any damage to the nuclear station as it can withstand a 9-point earthquake”, states the message.

The tremors in Turkey did not cause a damage to any settlement or building in Armenia.

General Director of ANPP Gagik Markosyan said that it is useless to speak about 2-3-point earthquake felt on the territory of the nuclear station.

He said that ANPP in repair process since September 11.

According to the recent data, the number of victims of the earthquake in Turkey increased to 239 people. About 1.3 thousand people got injuries.

Earthquake with 7.2 magnitude took place on Sunday afternoon in the south-east of Turkey. Monday night in the devastated province another earthquake took place with a magnitude of 6.1.

Local seismologists forecast that the number of victims in the largest disaster in recent years in Turkey may be from 500 to thousand people.

In 1976 in the province Van an earthquake of the same magnitude took place. At that time 3840 thousand people died

via Earthquake in turkey did not and could not harm the Armenian NPP – ministry of emergency situations | 24/10/2011 20:07 | News agency ARKA – Armenian news.

October 27, 2011