Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, Nov. 23 / Trend H. Hasanov /
The top managers of Turkmenistan's fuel and energy complex - a country among the four largest natural gas holders in the world - will hold talks on cooperation within the International Energy Forum in Europe soon, an official Turkmen source reported.
Turkmen Petroleum and Mineral Resources Minister Bairamgeldy Nedirov will attend a meeting of the Energy Charter Council in Brussels over the next two days.
In turn, Yagshigeldi Kakayev, the director of the Turkmen Presidential State Agency for Hydrocarbon Resources Management and Use, went to a meeting of the U.N. Economic Commission for Europe's Committee on Sustainable Energy in Geneva.
These negotiations may provide special dynamics of interaction with European countries after official Ashgabat's statement about its readiness to provide its resources to the European market from the country's largest Eloten gas field (with projected reserves of 21 trillion cubic meters) and the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea.
Ashgabat has already signed a memorandum of understanding on energy with the EU.
Moreover, the Turkmen leadership quite clearly voiced its opinion in favor of building the Trans-Caspian gas pipeline. This will allow for the transportation of resources to Azerbaijan and from there to the European market via Turkey within the Nabucco project.
European experts, who recently addressed the Oil and Gas Conference in Ashgabat, said the contract on providing Turkmen gas to Europe could be a breakthrough in terms of energy diversification.
Turkmenistan strives to find more profitable and stable prices in Europe. Now, the country sells fuel to China, Russia and Iran. Complex negotiations on supplies are periodically held with all of these countries. According to the plans, the German RWE oil and gas company, a key shareholder in the European gas pipeline project operating in the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea, plans to sign an agreement with Turkmenistan by late 2010.
Ashgabat announced that gas production must reach 230 billion cubic meters of gas per year by 2030, of which 180 billion will be intended for export. At present, the country's gas production infrastructure allows for the production of 70 billion cubic meters per year. However, these figures may increase this year thanks to state investments.