Azerbaijan, Turkey fail to agree on Shah-Deniz gas sale detailsJuly 25, 2011 - 12:53 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey and Azerbaijan can not agree on the legal aspects of the contract on sale of gas from the second stage of development of the Azerbaijani gas condensate field Shah-Deniz, SOCAR Head of the Foreign Investments Department Vagif Aliyev said at a meeting with Turkish journalists, Today’s Zaman reported. He said the two sides concluded negotiations on most of the contract details, including transit fees, gas volume and transportation options. However, disagreements on legal issues still hamper the signing of the agreement. Aliyev said the volume of investment in the Shah-Deniz-2 project, which, given the construction of pipelines can hit $25 - $30 billion, should be safeguarded. One of ways to obtain such a guarantee is a solid legal framework that would protect the interests of all parties. "The legal norms governing the contract may be British or Swiss regulations," Aliyev said. He said an agreement signed with BOTAS in 2010 on the Shah-deniz project was governed by the British regulations - the same kind of agreement should be on the Shah-Deniz-2 project. Shah Deniz reserves are estimated at an amount of 1.2 trillion cubic meters of gas. The contract to develop the offshore Shah Deniz field was signed June 4, 1996. Participants to the agreement are: BP (operator) - 25.5 percent, Statoil - 25.5 percent, NICO - 10 percent, Total - 10 percent, LukAgip - 10 percent, TPAO - 9 percent, SOCAR-10 percent. Under the Azerbaijan- Turkey contract, Turkey should receive 6.6 billion cubic meters of gas from the Shah Deniz annually. The volume will be 6 billion cubic meters under the Shah-Deniz-2 project, according to Trend News. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Politico: Belarus delivered advanced weapons to Azerbaijan in 2018-2022 Belarus delivered advanced weapons to Armenia’s enemy even though both countries were supposedly allies in a defense pact. Armenia Security Council chief to attend Ukraine peace summit Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan will take part in the Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland. Armenian govt. approves ratification of EAEU-Iran free trade deal At a meeting on Friday, June 14, the Armenian government approved the ratification of an EAEU free trade agreement with Iran. Deputy U.S. Secretary of State to arrive in Yerevan Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Richard R. Verma will travel to Yerevan, Armenia from June 17-19 to. |