Zaman, Turkey
May 28 2005
Baku-Ceyhan Breaking Point
ERHAN BASYURT
05.28.2005 Saturday – ISTANBUL 19:30
The first crude oil has been pumped through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan
pipeline that will carry Caspian oil to the world. This giant project
is not only important for Azerbaijani-Turkish relations, but it is
also a turning point for the region’s future. This is the first time
a former Soviet republic, independently, has been able to complete an
energy pipeline that Russia abandoned without maintenance, and then
pump its oil to the world. The new pipeline will bring about gradual
but sustainable development to the Azerbaijani economy. Azerbaijan
expects a 20 percent growth rate every year, in the next few years.
This is a great success for Azerbaijan which gained its independence
in the wake of the destruction and ruins of the [Nagorno]-Karabakh
conflict.
The 1,744-km Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, which is accepted as the
one of the longest in the world, will bring peace and cooperation to
the three countries it passes through. This partnership will even
become stronger when the gas pipeline, that is being constructed
parallel to the oil pipeline, is completed. The project’s biggest
partner, British Petroleum (BP), claims the revenue the three
countries will generate from oil transportation alone will be $150
billion.
The presidents of the three countries came together at the pipeline’s
oil-pumping ceremony and also signed a protocol to construct the
“Kars-Tbilisi-Akhalkalaki-Baku” railway. This project also shows that
there is a stability pact in the Caucasus. The project that will
connect Turkey with Eurasia, was delayed for years due to the threat
from the Armenian minority in Georgia’s Akhalkalaki region. Russia
evacuating its military bases in Batumi and Akhalkalaki, under the
framework of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe’s (OSCE’s) disarmament initiative, paved the way for this
railway project.
Kazakhstan will be connected to this pipeline via Aktau. Thanks to
this project this country will also have an alternative pipeline to
that of Russia. Also, the oil tanker traffic, and the threats posed
by tankers to the enviroment and human life in the Bosphorous and
Dardanelles will be reduced. In addition, another Turkic republic,
Turkmenistan, will be also be connected to this gas pipeline project.
If this happens, it would mean that the Trans-Caspian Project
indirectly has materialized. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline has
great strategic importance for Turkey. Ceyhan, along with the Kerkuk
pipeline, have increased Turkey’s importance as an energy delivery
point outside the Gulf. The geostrategic importance of Incirlik for
the US and Cyprus for Turkey has increased. Turkey, which became an
energy route with Iranian and Azeri gas, and also Iraqi and Caspian
oil, now has more strategic value for the European Union (EU). The
project to carry natural gas to Europe via Greece, in particular, has
now become a possibility rather than a dream.
Besides Azerbaijan’s natural gas and oil reaching Turkey, the 6.5
percent share of the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) in this
project is of great importance. For the first time, Turkey will be
participating in an international partnership with big oil companies
in such a large area of oil and natural gas. These experiences
undoubtedly will contribute greatly and give the needed financial
backing to the roles TPAO will play in the future.
Consequently, the oil from the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline comes
from the Caspian region, which has 8 percent of the proven oil
reserves in the world and the oil flowing from this pipeline will
exceed 1 percent of the world’s total supply. This means that the
world energy market will not change its route as a result of these
projects, but these amounts are enough to remake the countries in the
region, consolidate their independence and allow them establish
stable relations.
Pumping oil through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline is a breaking
point from many perspectives and strengthens the search for
multidimensional cooperation.