NEWS BRIEFS

AZERBAIJAN: BAKU MAY DOUBLE GAS PRICE FOR TURKEY
5/20/09

Print this article   Email this article

Turkish and Azerbaijani media outlets on May 20 reported that Azerbaijan is prepared to double the price it charges Turkey for natural gas.

Both Turkey’s Haber7 newspaper and Azerbaijan’s APA news service reported that the new fee will be in the $200-$250 range per thousand cubic meters (tcm). That could potentially double the $120/tcm currently paid by Turkey, which at present is the largest foreign purchaser of Azerbaijani gas. There has been no official confirmation of the hike.

During May 13 talks in Baku with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Recep Erdogan offered to purchase greater volumes of Azerbaijani gas, tossing into the bargain Ankara’s unwavering support for Azerbaijan’s claim to the disputed Nagorno-Karabkah territory. Nevertheless, Aliyev said that a price hike was inevitable.

Posted May 20, 2009 © Eurasianet
http://www.eurasianet.org

The Central Eurasia Project aims, through its website, meetings, papers, and grants, to foster a more informed debate about the social, political and economic developments of the Caucasus and Central Asia. It is a program of the Open Society Institute-New York. The Open Society Institute-New York is a private operating and grantmaking foundation that promotes the development of open societies around the world by supporting educational, social, and legal reform, and by encouraging alternative approaches to complex and controversial issues. The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent the position of the Open Society Institute and are the sole responsibility of the author or authors.