{"word_count": 230, "character_count": 1431}
The conundrum of the Southern gas corridor: What are the risks for Europe and Azerbaijan? The viewpoint of an insider / Anthony Livaniost, Actuelles de l'Ifri, avril 2013, 18 p.http://www.ifri.org/downloads/actuelleslivanios17413.pdfExecutive Summary (© IFRI) :For more than ten years harsh negotiations among different oil majors and pipeline consortia have been taking place about the Southern Gas Corridor, all of them seeking to transit 10 bcm/year of natural gas that will be produced from the Shah Deniz giant gas field of Azerbaijan to the European Union. As of today, no Final Investment Decision (FID) has been reached neither for the preferred pipeline route to Europe, nor for the production of the second phase of Shah Deniz.Yet a decision has to be made. Europe will remain a major gas importer as clearly shown by the International Energy Agency’s scenarios for 2035. Even if shale gas may be a game-changer as far as Chinese needs for gas imports are concerned, many uncertainties remain regarding the risk of the EU competing with China in the global market for natural gas imports. Consequently the EU needs to secure its gas supplies. What is at stake is nothing but its competitiveness in the world economy. In the words of EU Commissioner for Energy, Günther Oettinger, “globally, demand growth poses a threat to security of supply and, with its impact on prices, our economic competitiveness.”... lire la suite