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BAKU: Turkish Minister Says Gas Deal Reached With Baku

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  • BAKU: Turkish Minister Says Gas Deal Reached With Baku

    TURKISH MINISTER SAYS GAS DEAL REACHED WITH BAKU

    news.az
    April 27 2010
    Azerbaijan

    Taner Yildiz Agreement has been reached with Azerbaijan on gas prices
    with 'almost no' outstanding issues, according to Turkey's energy
    minister, Taner Yildiz.

    He made the remarks yesterday to journalists in the corridors of the
    Grand National Assembly.

    The minister said that the issue of the transportation of Azerbaijani
    gas to Europe through Turkey remained unsettled, however.

    'SOCAR President Rovnag Abdullayev and I met Prime Minister
    Recep Tayyip Erdogan and he agreed to sign a basic agreement with
    Azerbaijan,' the Turkish minister said.

    'There is no need to disclose details. We agreed that we will not
    yet disclose the details of these negotiations, but one thing I can
    say for sure is that both sides have taken the appropriate steps. The
    main objects of discussion were the price of gas from Shah Deniz-1,
    the price and volume of gas from Shah Deniz-2, and transportation. We
    have reached an agreement on the three issues,' Taner Yildiz said.

    Yildiz said it was planned to include compensation for the price of
    gas sold by Azerbaijan to Turkey since the agreement was concluded
    in April 2008. 'Azerbaijan has agreed to this and both sides have
    made concessions,' he said.

    The talks on gas prices have been under way since the autumn.

    Rovnag Abdullayev, president of Azerbaijan's State Oil Company, SOCAR,
    said at the end of February that Baku was tackling all three gas
    issues as a package. 'Failure to reach agreement in one area affects
    the solution of the others,' he said. Yildiz's remarks yesterday
    imply that the whole package of issues has not yet been agreed.

    Taner Yildiz said earlier in March that political considerations were
    holding up agreement. 'I think that there is a problem with Armenia,'
    Yildiz said. 'Even though Turkey says it will not agree to an option
    [for rapprochement with Armenia] not approved by Ilham Aliyev, I think
    we have not been able to fully explain our position to Azerbaijan.

    Therefore, it has not been possible to reach a gas deal yet. But I
    think the agreement will be reached.'
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