TURKEY - SEEKING BETTER TERMS

 Hürriyet Daily New, Istanbul - September 10, 2020

Turkey seeking better terms to renew gas supply contracts, energy official says

ISTANBUL-Reuters

Turkey expects gas suppliers to offer more competitive pricing and flexibility if they want to renew long-term contracts totaling 16 billion cubic meters a year, a senior energy ministry official said.

More than a quarter of Turkey’s long-term gas contracts expire next year, including imports via pipeline from Russia’s Gazprom and Azerbaijan’s SOCAR and a liquefied natural gas (LNG) deal with Nigeria.

Competition from cheap U.S. LNG and the potential for Turkey to start its own gas production in the Black Sea have changed market dynamics, the Turkish ministry official told reporters.

“Old-fashioned” gas contracts, which are often indexed to oil prices and commit buyers to penalties if they do not buy their full quota, no longer match market realities, he said, and prices should be set against those at major gas hubs.

“We started to discuss whether we are going to renew (or)whether we are going to find an alternative supply,” said the official, who spoke at a briefing on condition of anonymity. The decision would depend on whether suppliers “approach with same old habits - no flexibility, not very competitive price offers”.

In that case “I don’t think we will see the existing contracts continue,” he said.

Turkey relies on imports for nearly all its oil and gas needs. In the first half of this year imports from Russia and Iran fell back, while supplies from Azerbaijan increased and purchases of U.S. gas rose sharply.

 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

POMPEO VISIT TO GREECE NEXT WEEK - TO DISCUSS DEFENCE MATTERS

  A visit by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Greece, his second in less than a year, is expected to focus on a deepening of bilateral military cooperation and Greece’s plans for defense procurements, while also evaluating tensions with Turkey and developments in the Eastern Mediterranean.  Pompeo is to visit the US naval base at Souda Bay on Crete on Tuesday following talks in Thessaloniki on Monday with Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias. Apart from the Souda visit, which has prompted annoyance in Turkey, the US envoy will also be hosted by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at his home on the island.  The visit is seen as underlining the significance of Greek-American cooperation in defense and security and of Greece’s place as a hub of stability in the region.  The US appears keen to deepen ties with Greece following the renewal of the Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement signed between the two countries last year. In addition, US firm Lockheed Mar...
Read more

ANKARA UNDERMINES PLANS FOR DIALOGUE

 eKathimerini - September 12, 2020: Ankara undermining hopes of dialogue VASSILIS NEDOS ·        A day after the MED7 summit of southern European countries pledged its full support to Greece and Cyprus, to Turkey’s intense dismay, Ankara responded by essentially dashing any hopes of a dialogue to de-escalate tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean by setting a raft of preconditions which Athens deems unacceptable. In a fresh indication that the chasm between the two countries doesn’t appear to be getting bridged any time soon, the representative of the Turkish Foreign Ministry, Hami Aksoy, said that in order for a de-escalation to take place it is imperative that Greece withdraws all its military vessels that it has deployed near the Oruc Reis seismic research vessel, supports NATO’s conflict prevention initiative, halts the militarization of the islands of the East Aegean and Kastellorizo, and stops increasing pressure on the “Turkish” minority in Western...
Read more