Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 18
By Elena Kosolapova - Trend:
There is no alternative to the Azerbaijani gas for Georgia, considering its affordable price and the fact that Azerbaijan is the country's strategic partner, Lasha Dzebisashvili, professor at the University of Georgia, told Trend.
"Gas purchase from Azerbaijan is more favorable [than purchase from other suppliers] for Georgia," he said. "If SOCAR [Azerbaijan's State Oil Company] is able to supply additional gas to Georgia, then I will not see an alternative to the Azerbaijani gas."
"However, if Azerbaijan refuses to increase the supply to meet Georgia's growing needs in gas in the winter season, the current deficit will be reimbursed by supplies from other sources, such as Iran," said Dzebisashvili.
Earlier, Managing Director of the National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) Alireza Kameli said that Tehran and Tbilisi conduct negotiations about the supply of 200 million cubic meters of the Iranian gas to Georgia.
"The infrastructure for the supply both through Azerbaijan and Armenia exists. But the admissibility of these gas prices is an important question," said the expert.
"Considering the prices for the Iranian gas, transportation and transit, this idea becomes highly questionable," he explained.
In addition, Dzebisashvili noted that gas production in Iran is mainly carried out in the country's south part, while the supplies to Georgia have to be delivered from the north.
---
Follow the author on Twitter: @E_Kosolapova