Turkmenistan: New Purge amid Allegations of Exaggerated Gas Estimates

President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov has sacked the heads of Turkmengaz, Turkmenneft and Turkmenneftegazstroy for showing an "irresponsible attitude" toward their jobs.

Russian media outlets are linking the top-level purge to allegations that Turkmenistan's gas reserves have been grossly overestimated.

As a result of the purge, Nura Mukhammedov is replacing Dovlet Mommayev as the head of Turkmengaz. Mommayev had held the post only since July. But, according to a Turkmen state news agency report, Mommayev was around long enough to be guilty of "a number of shortcomings and omissions."

Orazdurdy Hojamuradov was relived from his post of chairman of Turkmenneft "due to transfer to another job." Berdymukhamedov charged Hojamuradov with "not taking the necessary measures to increase oil production" and allowing the state-owned enterprise's production to be eclipsed by foreign companies that are "twice as efficient." Annaguly Deryaev, the former minister for the oil and gas development, is taking over the top position at Turkmenneft. Oraznur Nurmuradov was appointed oil & gas minister in his place.

?tamurad Durdiyev was sacked from Turkmenneftegazstroy. According to Berdymukhamedov, the state oil and gas construction company is failing to "cope with its tasks." Durdiyev is being replaced by Akmurad Egeleev.

The Russian newspaper Vremya Novosti reported that a number of senior figures are now under investigation following the delivery of confidential information to western companies hoping to invest in the Turkmen oil and gas industry.

Sources allege that some foreign companies paid Turkmen officials to hand over technical data on the size of deposits in the South Yoloten--Osman fields. The "unprofessional" nature of these documents reportedly alerted the would-be investors to discrepancies between the official projections and actual reserves.

According to British auditors, Gaffney Cline & Associates, the deposits contains between 4 trillion cubic meters of gas and perhaps as much as 14 trillion. The Vremya Novosti report speculates that Gaffney Cline & Associates might have been given suspect information from the Turkmen government to begin with.

The scandal may also have claimed another victim: Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov, who reportedly angered the president by failing to protect Berdymukhamedov from difficult question posed by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during a September meeting in New York. Meredov, a long-time political survivor and stalwart in Berdymukhamedov's cabinet, has not been seen on television for weeks, Vremya Novosti claimed.