Germany considers gas transit project from Azerbaijan amid Trump criticism
(Baonghean.vn) - After US President Donald Trump criticized Germany for being too dependent on gas supplies from Russia, German Chancellor Angela Merkel will visit Azerbaijan this week to discuss the development of a southern gas pipeline to transport gas from the Azeri gas field (from the Caspian Sea in Azerbaijan) to Europe.
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| President Trump has criticized Germany as a “captive” of Russia. Photo: Getty |
The visit shows Chancellor Merkel's openness to finding affordable alternative gas supplies, even as the German leader remains committed to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project, which would transport gas directly from Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea.
“We have a strong interest in further developing the Southern Corridor. This is part of the European Union’s diversification strategy to transport gas from other regions, not just Russia, to Europe,” said a senior German government official.
According to German officials, in the capital Baku (Azerbaijan), Chancellor Merkel will discuss energy issues, including improving infrastructure to help transport gas from Azerbaijan to Europe via Türkiye.
Azerbaijan is expected to play an important role, as the country plans to launch the second phase of a gas pipeline from the vast Shah Deniz field to Europe.
Shah Deniz II is expected to produce 16 billion cubic meters of gas per year from 2020, with 10 billion cubic meters destined for Europe and 6 billion cubic meters for Türkiye and Georgia. Gas could then be shipped to Europe from Turkmenistan, Iran and Iraq.
In a sign of progress, this month Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan agreed in principle on how to divide the Caspian Sea's vast oil and gas resources.
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| Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Photo: AP |
However, the southern pipeline is being dwarfed by Nord Stream 2, a Gazprom initiative that would double Russia’s export capacity to Europe to 110 billion cubic metres. Most German industries welcome the project, which would make gas as cheap as possible.
Last month, President Trump, who has urged Germany to buy more liquefied natural gas from the United States, criticized Germany as a “captive” of Russia due to its dependence on Russian energy, a charge Berlin denies. Trump also called the Nord Stream 2 project “horrible.”
Chancellor Merkel discussed energy issues with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a palace outside Berlin over the weekend. Merkel will also visit Georgia and Armenia as part of a three-day trip starting tomorrow, August 23. On August 25, the German leader will hold talks with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev./.
