Post by tuftabis on May 27, 2008 23:11:52 GMT -7
Seven former Soviet-bloc countries, seeking to lessen dependence on Moscow's energy supplies and transport routes, have agreed to launch a joint project aimed at bypassing Russian territory to bring Caspian oil to European markets.
A joint declaration on creating a "Caspian energy space" was signed in Kyiv at the end of a two-day summit attended by seven presidents, including Georgia's Mikheil Saakashvili and Ilham Aliyev of oil-rich Azerbaijan. At its heart lies a bid by Ukraine to become a transport corridor for Caspian oil to Europe -- challenging Moscow's traditional domination of energy in the region.
"I'm certain that [the agreement's] implementation will give impetus to the development of joint energy projects and the improvement of technical capabilities for the production, transit, and supply of [energy] resources from the countries of the Caspian and other regions to European markets," Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, the summit's host, said in Kyiv on May 23.
Also attending were the presidents of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs, and officials from 30 other countries, the United Nations, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, World Bank, and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
Speaking at the summit, Yushchenko warned that Europe could one day fall victim to Russian "energy blackmail" if it fails to stem dependence on Moscow for the supply and delivery of gas and oil. The Ukrainian leader was echoed by Saakashvili, who said Moscow's support for pro-Russian separatists in the Georgian breakaway region of Abkhazia threatens the security of energy supplies in the Caucasus.
Much of the summit focused on Kyiv's plans to use an existing 670-kilometer-long Ukrainian pipeline to pump Azerbaijani and Kazakh oil from the Black Sea port of Odesa to the town of Brody, near the Polish border. Russia currently pumps its oil via the pipeline to Europe. Kyiv's plans call for extending the tract through Poland to Gdansk, on the Baltic Sea.
Ukraine would benefit from an Odesa-Brody-Gdansk pipeline by gaining supplies of oil and transit fees. Yushchenko is also promoting oil refineries in his country to be located along the pipeline route. The pipeline would also help EU customers and Ukraine lessen dependence on Russian energy while drawing Kyiv closer to the EU.
"We are confident that European Union countries should have the shortest and most economical access to Caspian oil," Yushchenko said. "When the Odesa-Brody project was completed in Ukraine in 2000, we intended from the very beginning for this project to be an integral part of the European energy market. It is the most economical way to deliver Caspian oil to EU countries."
For the plan to work, the oil -- destined for Czech, German, and Ukrainian refineries -- would need to be shipped to Odesa from Georgia. Saakashvili, speaking at the summit, cast Tbilisi as a reliable energy partner for the West, saying his nation is building infrastructure to move Caspian energy to Europe.
"A new oil terminal was opened in Georgia recently with the participation of Azerbaijan," Saakashvili said. "This is an excellent example of Azerbaijani-Georgian cooperation. We have three oil-transit routes now: Supsa, Batumi, and Kulevi. And we're building a railroad that connects Azerbaijan, Central Asia, Georgia, and Turkey with the rest of Europe, and that will be completed within the next two or three years."
Azerbaijan's Aliyev said Baku is also keen to move forward on shipping oil to the Odesa-Brody pipeline. "Azerbaijani oil is delivered to the Black Sea basin now, and it can be used to fill the Odesa-Brody pipeline," he said. "But we're talking about a broader format of cooperation, including refining, distribution, and gaining access for [Azerbaijani] oil to the Ukrainian market and possibly its neighboring countries."
Yushchenko and Aliyev are due to meet again in November, shortly after a joint working group from the two countries is expected to deliver its first report on the possibilities of pumping Caspian oil into the pipeline.
Kazakhstan, which Yushchenko would also like to include in the project, has expressed interest as well. But Kazakh Deputy Energy Minister Lyazzat Kiinov told reporters at the summit that there are some "difficult questions" about the pipeline that still need to be answered, including shipping oil from Kazakh to Azerbaijani ports, and then from Georgia to Ukraine.
The EU appears likely to give the project a boost at a summit next month. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said this week that Warsaw and other new EU members would seek a deal at the gathering to increase cooperation with Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan -- all former Soviet republics where Russia is seeking to reassert its influence.
RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service contributed to this report
A joint declaration on creating a "Caspian energy space" was signed in Kyiv at the end of a two-day summit attended by seven presidents, including Georgia's Mikheil Saakashvili and Ilham Aliyev of oil-rich Azerbaijan. At its heart lies a bid by Ukraine to become a transport corridor for Caspian oil to Europe -- challenging Moscow's traditional domination of energy in the region.
"I'm certain that [the agreement's] implementation will give impetus to the development of joint energy projects and the improvement of technical capabilities for the production, transit, and supply of [energy] resources from the countries of the Caspian and other regions to European markets," Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, the summit's host, said in Kyiv on May 23.
Also attending were the presidents of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs, and officials from 30 other countries, the United Nations, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, World Bank, and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
Speaking at the summit, Yushchenko warned that Europe could one day fall victim to Russian "energy blackmail" if it fails to stem dependence on Moscow for the supply and delivery of gas and oil. The Ukrainian leader was echoed by Saakashvili, who said Moscow's support for pro-Russian separatists in the Georgian breakaway region of Abkhazia threatens the security of energy supplies in the Caucasus.
Much of the summit focused on Kyiv's plans to use an existing 670-kilometer-long Ukrainian pipeline to pump Azerbaijani and Kazakh oil from the Black Sea port of Odesa to the town of Brody, near the Polish border. Russia currently pumps its oil via the pipeline to Europe. Kyiv's plans call for extending the tract through Poland to Gdansk, on the Baltic Sea.
Ukraine would benefit from an Odesa-Brody-Gdansk pipeline by gaining supplies of oil and transit fees. Yushchenko is also promoting oil refineries in his country to be located along the pipeline route. The pipeline would also help EU customers and Ukraine lessen dependence on Russian energy while drawing Kyiv closer to the EU.
"We are confident that European Union countries should have the shortest and most economical access to Caspian oil," Yushchenko said. "When the Odesa-Brody project was completed in Ukraine in 2000, we intended from the very beginning for this project to be an integral part of the European energy market. It is the most economical way to deliver Caspian oil to EU countries."
For the plan to work, the oil -- destined for Czech, German, and Ukrainian refineries -- would need to be shipped to Odesa from Georgia. Saakashvili, speaking at the summit, cast Tbilisi as a reliable energy partner for the West, saying his nation is building infrastructure to move Caspian energy to Europe.
"A new oil terminal was opened in Georgia recently with the participation of Azerbaijan," Saakashvili said. "This is an excellent example of Azerbaijani-Georgian cooperation. We have three oil-transit routes now: Supsa, Batumi, and Kulevi. And we're building a railroad that connects Azerbaijan, Central Asia, Georgia, and Turkey with the rest of Europe, and that will be completed within the next two or three years."
Azerbaijan's Aliyev said Baku is also keen to move forward on shipping oil to the Odesa-Brody pipeline. "Azerbaijani oil is delivered to the Black Sea basin now, and it can be used to fill the Odesa-Brody pipeline," he said. "But we're talking about a broader format of cooperation, including refining, distribution, and gaining access for [Azerbaijani] oil to the Ukrainian market and possibly its neighboring countries."
Yushchenko and Aliyev are due to meet again in November, shortly after a joint working group from the two countries is expected to deliver its first report on the possibilities of pumping Caspian oil into the pipeline.
Kazakhstan, which Yushchenko would also like to include in the project, has expressed interest as well. But Kazakh Deputy Energy Minister Lyazzat Kiinov told reporters at the summit that there are some "difficult questions" about the pipeline that still need to be answered, including shipping oil from Kazakh to Azerbaijani ports, and then from Georgia to Ukraine.
The EU appears likely to give the project a boost at a summit next month. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said this week that Warsaw and other new EU members would seek a deal at the gathering to increase cooperation with Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan -- all former Soviet republics where Russia is seeking to reassert its influence.
RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service contributed to this report
