Tag Archives: hydrocarbons

Turkmen leader travels to Kabul

AUG. 27 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Turkmen leader Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov travelled to Kabul to meet with Afghan president Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, an important signifier that he wants to play a greater role in improving his neighbour’s stability. Turkmenistan has developed a handful of high profile projects with Afghanistan, including the TAPI pipeline that will pump gas to India.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 245, published on Aug. 28 2015)

Sinopoec and Lukoil complete Kazakh deal

AUG. 20/21 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – China’s state-linked Sinopec agreed to buy the half of Kazakhstan-based Caspian Investments Resources (CIR) for $1.09b that it didn’t already own from Russia’s Lukoil, media reported. The price is lower than the $1.2b initially struck in 2014 and reflects the lower oil price. CIR used to be called Nelson Resources.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 245, published on Aug. 28 2015)

Turkmengaz to lead TAPI

AUG. 6 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India have picked Turkmengaz, the Turkmen national gas company, to lead the construction of the so-called TAPI pipeline which, they hope, will pump gas from Central Asia to the Indian subcontinent.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 242, published on Aug. 7 2015)

Kazakh Central Bank buys 10% stake in Kashagan oil project

JUNE 30 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – The Kazakh Central Bank bought a 10% stake in Kazmunaigas from the country’s sovereign wealth fund Samruk Kazyna for 750b tenge ($4b), a move analysts said was designed to help the state- owned energy company pay off debts generated by a sharp fall in oil prices.

This is the second reorganisation of Kazmunaigas since June. It earlier announced the sale of half its 16.8% stake in the Kashagan oil project to Samruk-Kazyna for $4.7b.

Analysts at Halyk Bank, a Kazakh bank, said the latest move shifted debt once again from Kazmunaigas to Samruk Kazyna to the Central Bank.

“If the first transaction raised the net debt of Samruk-Kazyna, the second lowered Samruk- Kazyna’s net debt, and the credit risk. By divesting of Kazmunaigas, Samruk-Kazyna reduced the most expensive part of its debt,” Halyk Finance senior analysts Sabit Khakimzhanov and Gulmariya Zhapakova said in a note to clients.

Delays at Kashagan and a sharp fall in oil prices have worsened Kazmunaigas’ financial affairs.

But, although unprecedented, the Central Bank’s purchase will change little in Kazakhstan’s oil sector. The two transactions may have helped Kazmunaigas achieve a better financial position in the short term, but both moves are temporary.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 242, published on Aug. 7 2015)

Explosion hits pipeline from Azerbaijan’s Caspian Sea

AUG. 4 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – An explosion in Turkey on the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars-Ezurum gas pipeline has raised worries that Kurdish fighters and other factions may target energy transport infrastructure carrying oil and gas from the Azerbaijan’s Caspian Sea to Europe. Media reported an explosion on a remote section of the pipeline in east Turkey.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 242, published on August 7 2015)

Statoil quits Azerbaijani fields

JULY 20 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Statoil, the oil and gas company part owned by the Norwegian government, has decided to sell its 20% stake in the Trans- Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project that will pump gas from Azerbaijani fields in the Caspian to consumers in Europe.

Rovnag Abdullayev, the head of Azerbaijani oil and gas company SOCAR, announced the news on Azerbaijani TV.

“Statoil has decided to leave the TAP project completely, and there is a company which is ready to buy its stake,” ANS TV quoted him as saying.

“Several companies have expressed an interest in buying Statoil’s stake, and it would be better if several companies would buy it.”

Statoil declined to comment.

If confirmed, Statoil’s decision to quit TAP is probably more a reflection on how it is

re-adjusting its portfolio rather than on the project itself. Statoil has already said it wants to reduce its exposure to risk in its portfolio and has sold its stakes in the giant Shah Deniz field in the Caspian Sea as well as in the South Caucasus Pipeline.

Stakes in these projects were snapped up by SOCAR, BP and Malaysia’s Petronas and Statoil’s stake in TAP will attract bids from companies looking for a high-profile project.

TAP is an 870km pipeline project that should link up with the Trans-Anatolian Pipeline near the Turkey-Greece border which will then carry Azerbaijani gas onto central Europe.

The current TAP shareholders are BP (20%), SOCAR (20%), Statoil (20%), Belgium’s Fluxys (19%), Spain’s Enagas (16%) and Swiss company Axpo (5%).

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 241, published on July 23 2015)

Azerbaijani oil exports to Russia re-start

JULY 22 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – SOCAR, the Azerbaijani state- owned oil and gas company, resumed oil exports to Russia after a break of several weeks, Rovnag Abdullayev, the SOCAR chairman, was quoted by media as saying. No reason was given on why exports were resumed.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 241, published on July 23 2015)

Comment: Iran deal will give Central Asia an economic boost

JULY 23 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Many Central Asian countries have pledged their support for a deal between Iran and Western countries over its nuclear programme that will allow sanctions to be lifted. The positive feeling is mutual. In April 2015, Iran’s Foreign Minister noted that there is “no ceiling for the expansion of relations with regional countries, whether in the Caucasus or in Central Asia”.

Central Asia and Iran have already been cooperating for some time.

December 2014 saw Europe via Iran the inauguration of the new Iran-Turkmenistan-Kazakhstan railroad, linking Central Asia to Iran’s southern ports. Iran has oil swap deals with both countries.

Turkmenistan also has gas pipelines running to Iran and in 2010 Iran sent equipment to Tajikistan for the construction of the Sangtuda-2 hydro- power plant.

Increased formal, and more flexible, cooperation will certainly benefit Central Asia. Iran will give Central Asia greater access to Middle Eastern and European markets. The energy export potential is attractive, particularly given that last year Russia said it would stop buying Central Asian gas, and Turkmenistan recently accused Gazprom of failing to pay debts. Supplying Europe with gas via Iran may be more feasible for Turkmenistan. The opening up of Iran also provides another legitimate partner in the region to counterbalance Russian and Chinese dominance, as is a key aim of the region’s “multi-vector foreign policy”.

However, it will also produce new competition in the region. In August 2014, before any nuclear deal was signed, Iran announced it would no longer import gas from Turkmenistan, instead building up domestic production. Having been excluded from markets for so long, Iran will want to build up its own trade partners rather than act as a transit country for Central Asia. Moreover, more Iranian oil on the market may cause a drop in oil prices, impacting Kazakhstan at already difficult times.

One thing is certain — new transport and energy infrastructure will need to be built for any Iranian reintegration to take place. China will no doubt be looking with interest at the opportunities this presents.

By Sarah Lain, Research Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute in London

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 241, published on July 23 2015)

Iran suggests petrol imports for Kazakhstan

JULY 22 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Iran could export refined oil products to Kazakhstan, Vahid Ahmadi, the Iranian deputy science minister, told media. This is important because Kazakhstan is looking for ways to boost its supply of oil-based products.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 241, published on July 23 2015)

Turkmen minister visits Afghanistan

JULY 23 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Turkmenistan’s foreign minister Rashid Meredov will travel to Afghanistan for talks with his Uzbek counterpart, media reported. Turkmenistan has become increasingly worried about the build up of Taliban forces on its borders. It also has an interest in stability in Afghanistan because of the proposed TAPI pipeline that will pump gas to Pakistan and India.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 241, published on July 23 2015)