Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, March 1 / Trend, H. Hasanov /
Turkey is ready to assist in seeking alternative export routes for Turkmen gas, the text of the joint declaration signed during Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammadov's visit to Turkey (Feb.28 -1 March) says.
"The parties expressed their willingness to make mutually beneficial efforts to develop cooperation in the transportation of the Turkmen natural gas to world markets through alternative directions," the declaration signed by President Berdimuhammadov and Turkish President Abdullah Gul, says.
The sides expressed their support for international initiatives of both countries, including those related to ensuring energy security. Urgent issues in Central Asia and the Middle East was discussed during the talks in Ankara.
Ashgabat and Ankara are interested in implementation of the project of transporting Turkmen gas to Europe. The priority option is laying gas pipeline across the Caspian Sea and it connection to trans-national project Nabucco by transit through Azerbaijan.
The Nabucco project covers the territory of Azerbaijan, Turkey, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Austria. Its implementation, as well as the cost is periodically reviewed. Maximum capacity is 31 billion cubic meters of gas.
Potential buyers, Nabucco consortium members are Austrian OMV, Hungarian MOL, Turkish Botas, Bulgarian Bulgargaz, Romanian Transgaz and German RWE, the last of them is already represented on the Turkmen market by the Production Sharing Agreement on the shelf of the Caspian Sea.
In previous years, option of constructing the corresponding communication from Turkmenistan to Turkey via Iran was considered, which was opposed by the U.S. administration against the background of the situation around Tehran's nuclear program.