Prospects for Caspian gas production discussed in Baku

In 2010 Azerbaijani gas exports reached 7.8 billion cubic meters, said
Azerbaijani Minister for Industry and Energy at the 17th international
conference "Caspian Oil and Gas", adding that it will export 6.4
billion cubic meters of gas to Turkey, Georgia - 0.3 billion, Russia -
1 billion and Iran - 0.1 billion, Trend reports.
Oil production in Azerbaijan is expected to reach 52 million tons and
natural gas - approximately 30 billion cubic meters this year, 8
billion of which will be produced at the "Shakh-Deniz" oil fields.
This is three times more than domestic demand in Azerbaijan.
The "Nabuko" pipeline project is a top priority in Turkey. This
project is considered to be a fundamental part of the gas supply
routes diversification strategy in Eurasia, Turkish Minister for
Natural Resources Yusuf Yazar said.
"Turkey aspires to play the leading role in transportation of Caspian
gas to Europe. We will make every effort towards implementation of
this project," - Yazar said.
The participants in the Caspian Gas & Oil conference have focused on
the issue of gas, on which vice-president of the BP Group will make a
presentation, in particular the second phase of the "Shak-Deniz"
oil-field development - "Stage - 2". The other major presentations
will touch upon issues of Azerbaijani gas exports and
purchase-and-sale to Europe within the framework of the Stage-2
project.
Representatives of almost all the projects involved in Azerbaijani gas
production and export will speak at the conference - Nabucco, TAP
(Transadriatic Pipeline), TGI (Turkey-Greece-Italia) и AGRI
(Azerbaijan-Georgia-Romania Interconnection).
It is expected that gas production within the framework of Stage-2
project will start in 2016. Azerbaijan expects to reach an estimated
production level of 16 billion cubic meters a year by 2019. Nine
countries have already expressed their intention to import Azerbaijani
gas.