Washington's policy on the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline project would not change after the U.S. presidential elections on Nov. 7, a top American official said.
Speaking at Azerbaijani capital Baku on Sept. 12 at a conference called, "Azerbaijan: The Gateway to Eurasia," John Wolf, advisor to the president and secretary of state on Caspian basin energy diplomacy, has reportedly stated the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline project has, for the most part, been going according to schedule. He added that preliminary engineering work would begin shortly and would be followed by more intensive work.
Turkey s semi-official Anatolian news agency reported that Azerbaijani President Haidar Aliyev also attended the conference and made a speech about the importance of energy supply lines for the stability of the region.
Aliyev appealed to Armenia once more and called for the unconditional withdrawal of Armenian forces from the Azerbaijani territories they occupied in 1992-93. He added that an Armenian withdrawal was crucial for regional security and prosperity.
According to Anatolian news agency, speaking after the Azerbaijani president, Wolf said the Baku-Ceyhan project was supported by both the democrats and republicans and stated that there would be no change after the presidential elections.
Explaining that the project was politically significant and economically feasible, Wolf said Turkey had contributed significantly to the project. "I personally believe that the project will come to fruition," said Wolf.
Wolf reportedly pointed towards the potential risks for Turkey's Black Sea passage in the event of alternative routes being required.
Commenting on natural gas resources in the region, Wolf said they wanted Turkmenistan to join the project to sell natural gas to Turkey but added that in the event of a Turkmen refusal to join, there were other natural gas reserves in the region similar to those in Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan State Oil Company (SOCAR) Chairman Natik Aliyev reiterated his country s support for the Baku-Ceyhan project and stressed that they now wished to focus on selling natural gas to Turkey, the Anatolian news agency reported. Indicating that Azerbaijan's natural gas reserves would be ready for production in two to three years, Aliyev said they hoped to reach agreement on a gas deal with Turkey in the near future.
Meanwhile, the only opposing voice for the project came from Exxon-Mobil's President Terry Koonce, the Anatolian reported. He emphasized that they were not opposing the project in principal but they were still not satisfied with the feasibility thereof. He proposed that for the project's early oil production, Russia's Novorossiisk route should be considered as an option. – (Albawaba-MEBG)
© 2000 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
