Azernews.Az

Azerbaijan is ready to consider possible transit of Turkmenistan's gas through its territory after the Central Asian state makes a decision on the construction of the Trans-Caspian gas pipeline, the Azerbaijani energy minister said Tuesday.

Natig Aliyev told Trend news agency that the Trans-Caspian gas pipeline is not an Azerbaijani project and its implementation therefore does not depend on Azerbaijan.

"Turkmenistan's position plays an important role in this project," Aliyev said. "If Turkmenistan considers the project important and sees it as access to Western markets, Azerbaijan supports this idea. In turn Azerbaijan will create all the conditions for the pipeline's construction on its section."

Aliyev said Azerbaijan continues the work on the project.

"It is a difficult project. There are both political and commercial and economic interests here," Aliyev said.

He said the EU also has interest in the project, and trilateral consultations are currently underway.

"Negotiations are ongoing and there are difficulties associated with the commitments. First, Turkmenistan stated its intention to export at least 30 billion cubic meters. Secondly, the EU should guarantee that it will buy the gas. Thirdly, the financing issue of the pipeline is not defined yet," Aliyev said, adding that work to resolve all these issues is underway.

The Trans-Caspian pipeline was on the agenda of negotiations between senior representatives of the energy sector of Azerbaijan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and the EU, which took place earlier this month in Ashgabat.

The Trans-Caspian gas pipeline running around 300 kilometres is to be laid from the Turkmen coast of the Caspian Sea to Azerbaijan, where it will be linked to the Southern Gas Corridor. The Southern Gas Corridor is a priority energy project for the EU aimed at diversifying the routes and sources of supply and thereby increasing European energy security.

The negotiations between Turkmenistan and the EU and other countries on the construction of the Trans-Caspian gas pipeline have been ongoing since the late 1990s.

In September 2011 the EU issued a mandate for its negotiations with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan to build the Trans-Caspian pipeline.