Flow of Azerbaijani gas to Turkey resumes after a technical problem is resolved. Turkey dismissed reports that the interruption was intentional.

Turkish and Azerbaijani media report that the flow of gas from the Shah Deniz field to Turkey has now been fully restored following a sudden break in supply on Tuesday due to a technical problem. The interruption in supply came as Turkey like the rest of the region has been experiencing severe cold weather.

Before the platform's suspension the production volume at the field amounted to 25 million cubic meters of gas per day.  A spokesperson for BP told TREND News Agency that the company had "completed all scheduled work on the platform of Shah Deniz gas-condensate field and was preparing to open the wells." BP Azerbaijan is the technical operator of the field development. The technical fault happened during a routine maintenance in the power system of the Shah Deniz platform. Production from all four wells was subsequently suspended. During the operations on the platform the safety of personnel and equipment was fully ensured.

Reserves of Shah Deniz field are estimated at 1.2 trillion cubic meters of gas. The contract to develop the offshore Shah Deniz field was signed June 4, 1996. Participants to the agreement are: BP (operator) - 25.5 percent, Statoil - 25.5 percent, NICO - 10 percent, Total - 10 percent, LukAgip - 10 percent, TPAO - 9 percent, SOCAR-10 percent.

Speaking to reporters in Parliament, the Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yıldız said gas flow is expected to return to regular levels by Thursday night at the latest. He highlighted the role cold weather has played in obstructing efforts to fix the technical problems observed not only in Azerbaijan but also in Iran. He compared it to recent power cuts across Europe caused by severe weather conditions. Responding to press speculation in Turkey suggesting the drop in gas supply was intentional, Yıldız answered: "This is unfair to our Azeri and Iranian counterparts and negatively affect our relationship with them." Yıldız added, "We don't believe the reduction of the flow of natural gas is intentional."

Turkey imports 6.6 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas per year from Azerbaijan, around 16 percent of its total consumption. It also imports around 10 bcm from Iran, Turkey's second largest supplier after Russia. According to the influential Turkish Daily newspaper Todays Zaman Turkey halted gas supplies to Greece following the disruption in supply from Azerbaijan and said it has asked Iran to increase its supply.

source: commonspace.eu with TREND and Todays Zaman

photo: courtesy of Todays Zaman

Related articles

Editor's choice
News
Key European countries back Denmark in the face of Trump's continuing insistence on taking over Greenland

Key European countries back Denmark in the face of Trump's continuing insistence on taking over Greenland

 Six major European countries have declared their support to Denmark following renewed insistence by the US that it must have control over Greenland. "Greenland belongs to its people, and only Denmark and Greenland can decide on matters concerning their relations," said the leaders of the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Spain, in a joint statement, issued on Tuesday (6 January), together with Denmark. On Sunday, Donald Trump said the US "needed" Greenland - a semi-autonomous region of fellow Nato member Denmark - for security reasons. He has refused to rule out the use of force to take control of the territory, and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned on Monday that an attack by the US would spell the end of Nato. The issue of Greenland's future resurfaced in the wake of the US military intervention in Venezuela, during which elite troops went in to seize the country's President Nicolás Maduro and take him to face drugs and weapons charges in New York. Following the raid, Trump said the US would "run" Venezuela for an unspecified period of time. He also said the US was returning to an 1823 policy of US supremacy in its sphere of influence in the Western hemisphere - and he warned a number of countries the US could turn its attention to them. The US military raid in Venezuela has reignited fears that the US may consider using force to secure control of Greenland. A day after the raid, Katie Miller - the wife of one of Trump's senior aides - posted on social media a map of Greenland in the colours of the American flag, alongside the word "SOON". On Monday, her husband Stephen Miller said it was "the formal position of the US government that Greenland should be part of the US". In an interview with CNN, he also said the US "is the power of Nato. For the US to secure the Arctic region, to protect and defend Nato and Nato interests, obviously Greenland should be part of the US." Asked repeatedly whether the US would rule out using force to annex it, Miller responded: "Nobody's going to fight the US over the future of Greenland." Stressing they were as keen as the US in Arctic security, the seven European signatories of Tuesday's joint statement said this must be achieved by Nato allies, including the US "collectively" - whilst "upholding the principles of the UN Charter, including sovereignty, territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders". Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen welcomed the statement and called for "respectful dialogue". "The dialogue must take place with respect for the fact that Greenland's status is rooted in international law and the principle of territorial integrity," Nielsen said. Trump has claimed that making Greenland part of the US would serve American security interests due to its strategic location and its abundance of minerals critical to high-tech sectors. Greenland, which has a population of 57,000 people, has had extensive self-government since 1979, though defence and foreign policy remain in Danish hands. While most Greenlanders favour eventual independence from Denmark, opinion polls show overwhelming opposition to becoming part of the US.

Popular