Publications
EGF Gazprom Monitor  (118 Kb)
Issue 9: October 2011
A Snapshot of Key Developments in the External Relations of the Russian Gas Sector
Key points:
- In a somewhat surprising development for Gazprom, Turkish state-owned gas pipeline operator, Botaş, has
declined to extend its contract for 6 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas per year. The move is seen by some as
an attempt by Ankara to obtain gas price discounts.
- The Polish state-owned energy company, PGNiG, has joined its European counterparts in pressing for lower
gas prices from Gazprom. Warsaw wants to change the gas price formula and tie it to spot gas market prices.
- Another recent, unpleasant surprise for Gazprom was the launch of an investigation into its European
partners carried out by the European Commission (EC). Officially, the EC investigation concerns the potential
violation of antimonopoly legislation, although some commentators see the investigation as an attempt to
strengthen the position of European consumers in their negotiations with the Russian gas giant.
- Belarus has agreed terms with Gazprom for the sale of the remaining 50 percent stake in Beltransgaz. In
return, Belarus President, Alexander Lukashenko, is demanding guarantees of transit through the Belarusian
pipeline network and a reduction in gas import prices to the level of internal Russian prices.
- Ukraine President, Viktor Yanukovich’s attempt to destroy his political rival, Yulia Timoshenko, is playing into
Gazprom’s hands. As Brussels toughens its stance towards Kiev, Ukraine is forced to be more amenable in its
negotiations with Russia, especially those over the future of Ukraine’s Gas Transit System (GTS)
- Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s visit to China failed to produce a breakthrough in negotiations over the Altai
gas pipeline and potential Russian gas deliveries to China. The price of gas exports via the Altai pipeline
remains the main stumbling block, as Gazprom is currently seeking other ways of exporting gas to China,
namely via the Sakhalin-Khabarovsk-Vladivostok pipeline.
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Publications
EGF Turkey File (106 Kb) Insights into Turkish Domestic and International Politics during October 2011
Key Points:
- Turkey’s economy continues to flourish in comparison with other developed economies on its European
periphery. The country gained over a million jobs and clocked an 11 percent growth rate in the first quarter
of 2011 while its GDP grew by 8.8 percent.
- Germany’s Foreign Minister, Guido Westerwelle, leant his support to the Turkish accession bid to the EU,
saying that the EU should be “fair to Turkey in the negotiation process.”
- Ankara continues its condemnation of Syrian violence against opposition and activist members, and
according to a number of reports, is now hosting a group of former Syrian soldiers called the Free Syrian
Army.
- A large earthquake in the Van province has exacerbated Kurdish-Turkish relations with claims of bias being
leveled at the government for the manner of its response to the disaster in the mainly Kurdish region.
- Turkish Security Forces (TSK) continue their assault on PKK strongholds in Iraq after a devastating attack in
mid-October that left 24 TSK soldiers dead. On October 28, police arrested a number of pro-Kurdish BDP
Party members in and around Istanbul, including member of the intra-party constitutional commission, Buşra
Ersanli.
- Azerbaijan and Turkey finally conclude a natural gas supply agreement following two years of negotiations,
while BOTAS informs Gazprom that it will not renew a key existing gas supply contract with Russia.
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News
Russian gas to Stream Nord After 13 years of planning and two years of construction, the Nord Stream pipeline will deliver its first supplies of Russian gas to an estimated 26 million homes in the EU on Tuesday.
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