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Signing transit agreement between Azerbaijan and Turkey is beneficial for both sides

Oil&Gas Materials 18 August 2011 17:47 (UTC +04:00)

Azerbaijan, Baku, Aug. 18 /Trend, A.Badalova/

Signing a transit agreement between Azerbaijan and Turkey is mutually beneficial for both sides, said the Professor of International Relations at the American University of Paris Terence Murphy.

"The transit agreement between Azerbaijan and Turkey is a natural win-win for both countries," Murphy wrote in an e-mail to Trend.

He believes Turkey sees Caspian oil and gas as a regional resource for Turkey's economic and political development.

The alternative would be to deliver gas into the Russian network, Murphy said.

"Given the historical differences between Baku and Moscow, that alternative is difficult to accept," said Murphy.

Concluding a transit agreement with Turkey is necessary to transport Azerbaijani gas, particularly from the Shah Deniz field to Europe. Gas produced under the Shah-Deniz-2 project is considered the main resource for the Southern Gas Corridor project. Under the Shah-Deniz-2 project, Azerbaijan plans to ship gas to Europe at a volume of 10 billion cubic meters.

Azerbaijan and Turkey plan to reach a transit agreement on Azerbaijani gas supplies to Europe in September 2011, Turkish Ambassador to Azerbaijan Hulusi Kilic said earlier. Azerbaijan and Turkey plan to hold a new round of talks on the gas agreements package in late August.

The Southern Corridor is a priority EU energy project. It will diversify energy supply routes and resources, and increase EU energy security. The Southern Corridor includes the Nabucco gas pipeline, Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), White Stream, and ITGI (Turkey-Greece-Italy pipeline).

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