Azernews.Az

The United States and Azerbaijan have reached agreement on all energy issues and share views on ways of developing the Southern Corridor of pipelines, a top US energy official said as he wrapped up his visit to Baku on Tuesday.

US Special Envoy for Eurasian Energy Richard Morningstar told a press conference that during his meeting with President Ilham Aliyev, the agenda included the energy agreements signed between Azerbaijan and Turkey, which envision the purchase of Azerbaijani gas and its transit to Europe.

"Both of us think that this agreement could give a major impetus to the development of the Southern Corridor project," Morningstar said.

The package of energy deals signed by Turkey and Azerbaijan in late October includes an agreement on the supply of 10 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas per year to European customers via Turkey. The transit deal is necessary for the implementation of a slew of ambitious EU-backed pipeline projects aiming to transport Azerbaijani gas to European markets as part of the Southern Corridor, a priority EU energy project seeking to diversify sources of energy for European countries. The Southern Corridor includes the Nabucco gas pipeline, Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), White Stream, and Interconnector Turkey-Greece-Italy (ITGI).

On Russia and Iran’s opposition to the trans-Caspian pipeline, a 300-kilometer conduit which is to link Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan and carry natural gas to the West, Morningstar said: "It is common knowledge that the United States has long supported the trans-Caspian gas pipeline project. If the European Union, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan reach agreement upon the terms of gas transportation, the U.S., on its end, will support it."

Nabucco
The US envoy for Eurasian energy reiterated that Washington gives political support to the Nabucco pipeline project -- which seeks to deliver Caspian and Central Asian gas to European markets bypassing Russia.

"We believe that Nabucco would be an important project from the political and strategic viewpoints," he said. "If this project is realized and US companies become involved in the construction of the pipeline, our EximBank is ready to provide funding for it.

"Moreover, I would like to note that we are ready to support any pipeline that would cross the Southern Corridor, but on the condition that this pipeline would be smaller than Nabucco. Also, if such a project is implemented, there should be clear guarantees that if there is a possibility to transport bigger volumes of gas, it will be possible to expand the pipeline in question," Morningstar said.

Asked by Radio Liberty about increasing skepticism over Nabucco project’s prospects and whether or not he believes in its implementation, the US official said "time is needed to answer that question".

"I reiterate that we support the Southern Corridor," he continued. "I have no doubt that large quantities of gas will be shipped through the Southern Corridor. The only question is when this will happen. Therefore, it is important that Shahdaniz [partners in the consortium in charge of developing Azerbaijan’s giant gas field in the Caspian Sea] and [Azerbaijan's state energy firm] SOCAR initially plan the construction of a relatively small pipeline. In doing so, the possibility of future expansion of this pipeline should be taken into account."

Morningstar added that no final decision has been passed so far on any of the planned pipelines that are under consideration.

In early May, the Nabucco consortium announced about the postponement of the project's implementation terms. The pipeline's construction was scheduled for 2013, while the first gas supplies via the pipeline were expected in 2017.

Azerbaijani gas to be produced during Phase 2 of developing the Shahdaniz gas-condensate field is considered a key source of gas for the Nabucco pipeline.

The participants of Nabucco project are Austrian OMV, Hungarian MOL, Bulgarian Bulgargaz, Romanian Transgaz, Turkish Botas and German RWE companies. Each of participants has an equal share of 16.67 percent.

As for transportation of Iraqi gas through the Southern Corridor, Morningstar said it was currently hard to say whether or not this is possible. "But I am confident that at some point in the future, this [Iraqi gas exports] will be implemented."