Azerbaijan, Baku, July 11 / Trend A. Badalova /
Russia's aggravating relations with Ukraine and Turkmenistan will give push to construction of Nabucco gas pipeline, Energy Security Analysis analyst Andrew Reed said.
While attention of Russia and Europe is concentrated on ability of Ukraine to pay for gas and prevent failure of gas export to European consumers, relations between Russia and Turkmenistan rapidly deteriorate, ESAI analyst's report said.
Despite Russia's big ambitions to extend impact in gas sphere, Russia's relations with suppliers and transit countries, especially with Turkmenistan and Ukraine deteriorate. This aspect holds Russia away from European gas importers seeking alternatives to Russia's supplies.
One of these alternatives is Nabucco gas pipeline to transport Caspian gas to EU countries.
Great interest in Central Asian gas obliged Gazprom to offer Turkmenistan better price for gas, as well as take risks for supplies and resale.
"If Gazprom is able to use strategy "to take more and pay more" to expand impact in supplies of Central Asian gas, Russia will be able to hamper realization of Nabucco project and manage several ways of gas supplies both to Europe and Asia," Reed told Trend .
But world financial crisis led strategy of Gazprom to insolvency. "Resisting poor demand and prices, Gazprom will not be able to offer high price for growing volume of Central Asian gas," Reed said.
Roughly 175 million cubic meters of gas per day were supplied to Russia in the first quarter 2009 compared to 150 million cubic meters per day in 2008. But Gazprom reduced supplies from Turkmenistan in April because of disbalance in supplies.
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