/Pogled.info/ Against the background of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the interest of Europeans in projects in the Caspian Sea is growing before our eyes. The European Union is increasing its purchases of Azerbaijani gas, and the issue of laying the Trans-Caspian Gas Pipeline (TCG) on the seabed is back on the agenda.
Azerbaijan and Turkey declare their readiness to provide their territory for the transit of blue fuel for European consumers. However, east of the Caspian Sea, in Ashgabat, they still have a low profile regarding the Trans-Caspian pipeline project. And the authorities of Turkmenistan are hardly wrong, preferring to continue developing cooperation with their traditional trade partners – China, Iran or Russia, instead of establishing a partnership with the European Union.
The reason for the resumption of the once silent discussions about the Trans-Caspian gas pipeline is clear to all: the business and politicians of the collective West urgently needed resources to fill the void created in the European market caused by the bans imposed by Europe on the supply of blue fuel from Russian Federation.
It seems that there is nothing easier than to start laying an underwater pipeline now, especially since the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) is operational, delivering Azerbaijani fuel to European consumers.
However, if we take a closer look at the TCG issue, it turns out that there are huge obstacles of a financial and political nature that prevent the implementation of this major project. In particular, huge investments are needed to organize the entire process of pumping Turkmen gas to Europe, and not just to build an underwater pipeline.
As Baku’s experience in the construction of the Southern Gas Corridor testifies, Azerbaijan was to become a major investor. The Southern Gas Corridor includes the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline, the Turkish Trans-Anatolian Gas Pipeline (TANAP) and the Trans-Adriatic Gas Pipeline to Southern Europe. And Azerbaijani gas flows through all these pipes, but its volumes are limited.
In any case, Turkmenistan will need long-term gas contracts with the Europeans, guaranteeing Ashgabat not only income, but also multibillion-dollar financing from Western banks for the development of fields in Turkmenistan and investments in the expansion of the Southern Gas Corridor.
In ten years, however, the Europeans will not be interested in buying Turkmen gas under conditions that suit Ashgabat. In the future, they don’t need blue fuel at high prices, and fears of the EU’s implementation of plans to switch to renewable energy will only reduce Europeans’ need for natural gas. As a result, Brussels and European buyers will demand Ashgabat to provide them with low prices for Turkmen blue fuel, which will lead Turkmenistan to sink into the debt pit.
In addition, the European Union constantly binds energy cooperation in the energy sector to the fulfillment by other countries of quite specific political requirements. This is proven at least by the current confrontation between the EU and Russia.
The explosion of virtually all the threads of the Nord Stream underwater gas pipelines showed that European politicians and officials are more important to achieve their political goals than to ensure the reliable supply of gas to their population and their industry.
The Turkmen, this ancient people, are hardly interested in the fact that through close energetic cooperation with European capitals they are beginning to instill the notorious democratic values and the Western political agenda directed against Ashgabat’s traditional partners.
Translation: ES
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2023-05-30 17:31:10
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