Baku, Azerbaijan, June 14
By Rufiz Hafizoglu – Trend:
Russian Gazprom’s statement about irrelevance of considering a discount for Turkey during the period of low gas prices is quite natural, Salihe Kaya, a research assistant at the Turkish Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA), told Trend over the phone.
"Gazprom’s decision is quite natural as oil prices have been declining in the world market since 2014 and it negatively affects the countries exporting natural gas," Kaya said.
The expert added that energy companies are forced to take some actions to avoid losses.
Kaya said Gazprom’s decision will not benefit Ankara, as Turkey expected to get discounts when buying Russian gas.
The expert also ruled out the political nature of Gazprom’s statement.
"Taking into account the normalization of the Ankara-Moscow relations, this decision cannot be regarded as an attempt to put pressure on Turkey," Kaya said.
Earlier, Alexander Medvedev, deputy chairman of Gazprom’s board, said at a press conference that it is appropriate to talk about extra charge, rather than a discount for Turkey in the period of low gas prices.
"We have started negotiations during a period of very high gas prices, but now there is a period of low prices," he said. "It is time to talk about extra charge, rather than discounts."