Iran ready to revive Nabucco pipeline project and supply gas to Europe

Iran’s Deputy Oil Minister for International Affairs has said that Iran is ready to supply Europe with gas via the previously aborted Nabucco pipeline, adding that two European countries have already shown interest.

Speaking to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) on 11 August, Deputy Oil Minister for International Affairs, Ali Majedi, said that, with its major gas fields, Iran could supply gas to Europe via Nabucco and that the abortive gas pipeline project was useless without Iran.

As the international community considers lifting the sanctions against Iran, corporations and governments are strategically positioning themselves to take advantage of Iranian trade possibilities. Delegations from two European countries have already visited Iran this summer to discuss possible routes for gas deliveries, Majedi revealed without naming the countries. He continued that different routes were possible, including supplies via Turkey, Iraq, Syria, Caucasia and the Black Sea, adding that he saw the Turkish route as the most viable option.

The deputy minister said gas from the Shah Deniz gas field in the Caspian Sea would not be solely sufficient for the pipeline, as production at Shah Deniz would not exceed eight billion cubic meters a year, while the designed capacity of the pipeline is at least 23 billion cubic meters, therefore necessitating the need for Iranian involvement. 

Nabucco is an abortive project of a 3,300-kilometer-long gas pipeline from Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan to Germany and Austria and on to the rest of the EU. The project was estimated at €7.9 billion, although in 2012 it was estimated that the project may cost less. OMV Gas GmbH (Austria), BOTAS (Turkey), Bulgargaz (Bulgaria) and Transgaz (Romania) were parts in the consortium for pipeline construction.

Work on the project began in 2002. Initially, plans were to launch the construction in 2011, finishing it by 2014, but the project was repeatedly postponed because of problems with possible gas suppliers. In 2011, it was reported that the launch date was shifted to late 2018. In June 2013, an announcement came that the project had been closed in favour of a more promising project - the Trans-Adriatic pipeline.

For more news and expert analysis about Iran, please see Iran Strategic Focus.

© 2014 Menas Associates

Caspian: Oil struck at Zhambyl

Kazakhstan has struck new oil deposits in the Caspian Sea. Recently-appointed Oil Minister Uzakbai Karabalin said on 5 August that workers have located a significant deposit during exploratory work on the Zhambyl structure, being operated by a joint venture between KazMunaiGaz and a Korean consortium led by national player KNOC.

 

Assessment of reserves is ongoing, Karablin said, but “now one can talk about the discovery of a new deposit”, which he called a “joyful development”. The joint venture was established in 2008: Statoil had also been interested but withdrew as part of its Caspian retrenchment plans.

 

The announcement is good news for the Korean consortium as well as for Karabalin, who was appointed last month. Boosting exploration is a priority for the Oil Ministry as well as KMG as part of a plan to dramatically increase the reserves on the national company's balance sheet in the next few years.

 

Karabalin revealed the news at a meeting with President Nursultan Nazarbaev, where he also said that Kazakhstan produced over 40 million tons of crude in the first half of the year.

 

For more news and expert analysis about the Caspian region, please see Caspian Focus.

 

© 2013 Menas Associates

Turkmenistan calls for an international body to monitor energy supplies

Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov has said that the country intends to push forward the creations of a new UN body designed to monitor international energy supplies.

Talking in New York, Berdymukhammedov said that Turkmenistan is planning a draft proposal on the establishment of international body to monitor and ensure stable energy supplies on a permanent basis. The proposal will be unveiled to the world leaders during the 65th session of the UN General Assembly, said Berdymukhammedov.

Supplying natural gas and oil products to European markets constitute about 80 per cent of Turkmenistan's export trade, the number is expected to increase once the construction of a $2 billion pipeline to deliver natural gas from Turkmenistan's largest gas field, South Yolotan, to the coast of the Caspian Sea is completed. The Nabucco gas pipeline will connect the Caspian to the rest of Europe via Turkey.

Source: Ria Novosti

For more news and expert analysis about the Caspian region, please see Caspian Focus.

Turkmenistan raises borrowing from China to $8.1 billion

Turkmenistan's government has increased borrowing from China to $8.1 billion, to fund major developments in the Turkmenistan gas industry.

According to a number of national sources, Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdymuhamedov instructed gas industry leaders to hold negotiations with the State Development Bank of China (SDBC) for a preferential loan in the amount of $4.1 billion, to be used to further develop a field in Southern Eloten. China has already allocated Turkmenia $4 billion for realisation of the first stage of development of the field.

Earlier in the year, Turkmenistan's government granted licenses to ConocoPhillips and Mubadala Development Co for development of Block 21 in the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea.

Source: ABC Azerbaijan

For more news and expert analysis about the Caspian region, please see Caspian Focus.

GE invests 6million in to new Caspian services centre

General Electric Oil & Gas (GE Oil & Gas) has opened a new global services facility, south of Baku in the Republic of Azerbaijan, to encourage economic growth in the Caspian region. The facility worth, $6 million, will employ 14 local personnel, and will provide GE’s equipment repair and maintenance services for new and existing customers in the Caspian region.

“The new $6M investment Baku facility is crucial to the continued growth of our Global Services operations in the Caspian Sea region. The site provides a strong localized presence to help our customers grow their businesses with advanced engineering services and expertise, while also offering increased capacity to meet anticipated growth,” said, Global Services Leader, GE Oil & Gas, Neil Saunders.

The new centre contains two warehouses, two heavy-duty overhead cranes, an external storage facility and purpose built office space. A wide-range of GE drilling and production equipment will be maintained and repaired at the centre, including subsea wellheads, controls, connectors and subsea trees. GE has a vested interest in the Caspian oil and gas industry and says it expects to see major increases in offshore production over the next decade.

Talking about GE’s continued presence in the territory, Chief of Project Investment Department, State Oil Company of Azerbaijan, (SOCAR), Intigam Sadykhov said,“We are delighted with GE’s continued investment in the Caspian Sea region. The new state-of-the-art facility will be of great benefit to the oil and gas industry in the region and, indeed, to the local community.”

To find out more about GE Oil & Gas please visit GE's web site, which you can find here.

For more news and expert analysis about the Caspian region please see Caspian Focus.

© 2010 Menas Associates