By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
azemedia-new-logo
  • Donation
  • Who we are
  • Home
  • Opinion
  • News
    • Economy
    • Energy
    • Ecology
  • Culture
  • Diaspora
  • Interview
  • Science
  • Logistics-Transport
  • Gender
  • History
  • Defense
  • Karabakh
Aze.Media
Aa
Search
  • News
  • Economy
  • Ecology
  • Energy
  • Opinion
  • Culture
  • Gender
  • Interview
  • Science
  • Logistics-Transport
  • History
  • Defense
  • Karabakh
  • Diaspora
  • Who we are
Follow US
© 2021 Aze.Media – Daily Digest
Aze.Media > News > Energy > Azerbaijan is ready to provide Europe with emergency gas supplies
Energy

Azerbaijan is ready to provide Europe with emergency gas supplies

Azerbaijan is ready to supply Europe with some emergency gas should tensions between Russia and Ukraine disrupt shipments.

AzeMedia
By AzeMedia Published January 28, 2022 6 Min Read
maxresdefault
Elin Suleymanov

While additional exports wouldn’t be enough to replace top supplier Russia, the energy-rich nation can send more volumes to the continent, said Elin Suleymanov, Azerbaijan’s ambassador to the U.K. Still, any significant boost in volumes would require Europe to sign long-term gas contracts.

Europe is seeking to secure alternative sources of gas should shipments from Russia be halted or disturbed, and Azerbaijan has already provided extra supplies to Turkey after flows from Iran were halted. Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson has held talks with the U.S. and Qatar, and will on Feb. 4 attend a ministerial meeting of the Southern Gas Corridor – a network backed by the European Union that began delivering gas from the Caspian Sea to southern Italy more than a year ago.

“If there is an urgent need as we saw in Turkey, some volumes of course would be made available,” Suleymanov said in an interview in London. “But Azerbaijani volumes are not equal to the Russian volumes, that’s obvious.”

Azerbaijan can produce more gas and expand its Southern Gas Corridor, a supply system partly owned by British oil major BP Plc that took more than seven years and $33 billion to be built. It can also channel flows from Turkmenistan as the two nations are set to develop a previously disputed field in the Caspian Sea, Suleymanov said.

But any immediate boost to supplies would be limited, with a significant increase requiring European buyers to sign long-term gas contracts. That’s because energy infrastructure is expensive and it takes years to build, so nations investing in new projects need to guarantee they will have buyers.

Long-Term Deals

The deals favored by Azerbaijan are also a requirement imposed by Russia. With Europe transitioning fast to cleaner forms of energy such as wind and solar power, President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said that these types of deals will be needed if Russia is to invest in increasing exports to Europe.

“We don’t look at energy security and potential expansion and increase in volumes through a short term crisis, you cannot succeed with short-term mandates,” Suleymanov said. “It’s long-term planning, it is a process, it’s not like someone shows up and says ‘Give me more gas.’”

Azerbaijan will also have to take into account its own domestic consumption — which runs high in the winter — before providing more gas to Europe. The Caspian nation can’t replace Russia and Western partners should understand that in their confrontation with Moscow, he said. While Russia has been building troops on the boarder with Ukraine, Putin has denied it plans to invade.

“The reality of the crisis doesn’t mean just potential military confrontation, it also means lack of energy supplies, energy shortages,” he said. “Even without confrontation, we have just lived through an energy crisis in Europe.”

Coal Burn

European gas prices more than tripled last year as demand rebounded at a time supply just couldn’t keep up. Production in the continent has been in decline for years, Russia has been curbing supplies since the summer and lower renewables output left countries from France to Germany relying on dirty coal and even oil to keep the lights on.

“By now the coal production probably polluted more air within a couple of months than gas would do in years,” Suleymanov said. “There is certain hypocrisy in this.”

Azerbaijan could contribute to some normalization of tensions between Russia and Ukraine. While the nation isn’t playing any mediation role at the moment, it has good relations with both former Soviet Union partners, he said. President Ilham Aliyev was the most recent head of state to visit Ukraine, while at the same time having “strategically aligned” interests with Russia.

The meeting of Southern Gas Corridor will host representatives of the U.K., the U.S., the EU and Turkey, Suleymanov said.

Bloomberg L.P.

You Might Also Like

3rd Azerbaijan-Türkiye Energy Forum kicks off in Nakhchivan

BP is keenly interested in future projects within the oil and gas sectors as well as the energy industry in Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan’s SOCAR Trading starts LNG trading in Singapore

Mammoet done with jacking, load-out and float-over job for BP’s Caspian Sea platform

TotalEnergies: Inauguration of the Absheron Gas Field

AzeMedia January 28, 2022

New articles

Screenshot_712
Yesterday – “heroes,” today – “victims.”
Opinion October 4, 2023
287281
Politico learned of “secret talks” between the EU, US, and Russia in Istanbul on Karabakh.
News October 4, 2023
6515e8be42b9f3.88377110
What will happen to the Karabakh Armenians? – The Armenian diaspora’s narrative problem
Opinion October 4, 2023
64f9e6ed01e5464f9e6ed01e55169409918164f9e6ed01e5264f9e6ed01e53
Elchin Amirbekov on the Coexistence of Azerbaijanis and Armenians
Opinion October 4, 2023
Army3-IAI
Azerbaijan acquiring two reconnaissance satellites from Israel
Science October 3, 2023
arayik-harutyunyan-ruben-vardanyan-arkadi-ghukasyan-bako-sahakyan-1536x1026
Azerbaijan arrests several top Karabakh separatist leaders
News October 3, 2023
150080874035149887_1000x669
Musabekov: Western countries provide Pashinyan with necessary information and thus protect him
Interview October 3, 2023
az_france_flag
The working group on Azerbaijani-French interparliamentary relations suspends its activities.
News October 3, 2023
1440x810_cmsv2_27ca7bd7-d83a-57b8-aaa2-635ab0153955-7936688
EU’s Charles Michel: “Russia betrayed the Armenian people”
News October 3, 2023
10282219496b9e22324cb4811d184e227b907e
UN Mission Report refutes allegations of ethnic cleansing in Karabakh, disheartens Armenian diplomacy
News October 3, 2023

You Might Also Like

0c9689d8-4d8b-3886-aa4d-8ffcecfee35a_850

3rd Azerbaijan-Türkiye Energy Forum kicks off in Nakhchivan

September 29, 2023 2 Min Read
16952079312893526285_1200x630-1

BP is keenly interested in future projects within the oil and gas sectors as well as the energy industry in Azerbaijan

September 20, 2023 1 Min Read
shutterstock_2240923829

Azerbaijan’s SOCAR Trading starts LNG trading in Singapore

September 15, 2023 3 Min Read
ACE-topsides-installation-Source-Mammoet

Mammoet done with jacking, load-out and float-over job for BP’s Caspian Sea platform

September 13, 2023 8 Min Read
totalenergies-bet-on-gas-means-no-big-emissions-cut-by-2030

TotalEnergies: Inauguration of the Absheron Gas Field

September 1, 2023 2 Min Read
f017ec2d-4245-3856-908d-dbfb4fd0af85_850

Budapest reaches agreement with Baku on gas supply to Hungary

August 21, 2023 1 Min Read
ACE-topsides-installation-Source-BP

BP’s $6 billion project closer to first oil as topsides sail away and installation works wrap up

August 15, 2023 9 Min Read
SOCAR_ADNOC.JPG

ADNOC to acquire stake in Azerbaijan’s Absheron gas field

August 4, 2023 5 Min Read

Useful links

c24a7d34-02d2-45a2-95ad-980aa8264ad5-pojkz9yv6xhhbce432wwxbxmnoy6uz3duxvaa480e8
426082d1-a9e4-4ac5-95d4-4e84024eb314-pojkz91103g6zqfh8kiacu662b2tn9znit7ssu9ekg
ab65ed96-2f4a-4220-91ac-f70a6daaf659-pojkz67iflcc0wjkp1aencvsa5gq06ogif9cd0dl34
96e40a2b-5fed-4332-83c6-60e4a89fd4d0-pojkz836t9ewo4gue23nscepgx7gfkvx6okbbkasqo
759bde00-a375-4fa1-bedc-f8e9580ceeca-pq8mvb9kwubqf6bcadpkq5mz16nayr162k3j2084cg
aze-media-logo-ag1

Aze.Media offers an independent and strategic insight on socio-cultural, political and economic life in Azerbaijan.

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Cookies Policy

Email: editor@aze.media

© 2023 Aze.Media – Daily Digest

Removed from reading list

Undo
aze-media-logo1 aze-media-logo-ag1
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?