Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 8
By Anakhanum Hidayatova - Trend:
A Turkish expert says that gas pipeline construction between Turkey and Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in northern Iraq could be risky due to the conflicts in the Middle East and the characteristics of the local landscape.
"Safety of pipelines is one of the main tasks of any company or country that controls energy supplies," Bezen Balamir Coskun of Turkey's Gediz University, with expertise in foreign policy and international relations, told Trend Jan. 8.
"If the process of ensuring the safety of pipelines running through stable countries requires lots of efforts, then what can be said about a gas pipeline that is going to be built in a conflict zone? The project, which runs through northern Iraq, could be quite risky," she added.
Coskun noted that the area, through which the pipeline will run, includes valleys and mountains with height of 3,600-4,000 meters, making the project extremely expensive.
"Only guarantees from the KRG and Turkey's leadership may trigger the realization of this project," according to her.
A tender will be held Feb. 9, 2016 in Ankara for constructing a new gas pipeline between Turkey and the KRG. Both local and foreign companies are allowed to participate in the tender. The tender's winner will build the new gas pipeline in 720 days.
The pipeline's length will be 181.5 kilometers.
Turkey was the second largest importer of Russian gas after Germany in 2014. Ankara purchased 27.3 billion cubic meters of gas from Russian company Gazprom.
Turkey has been importing 25 to 27 billion cubic meters of gas from Russia in the past four years, which accounts for 55 to 58 percent of the country's total gas consumption.
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