Turkey's pipeline company Botas aims to develop gas fields in northern Iraq to strengthen supplies for the Nabucco pipeline project, general manager Saltuk Duzyol said on Wednesday. "As soon as the new petroleum law is enacted (in Iraq) there could be new opportunities to do business there ... The aim is to have Iraqi gas in the Nabucco," Duzyol told Reuters on the sidelines of an energy conference.
Two gas fields near Kirkuk have proven to hold 500 billion cubic metres each, Duzyol said. A new oil law is expected to regulate Iraq's rich energy reserves, although Iraqi officials said this week the country's parliament would have to overcome major disagreements before the legislation can pass.
The United States has supported development of Iraq's gas infrastructure and has been pushing for Iraqi gas export to Europe. Analysts say the move is an attempt to sideline Iran, which has some of the largest proven gas reserves in the world.
The 4.6 billion euro ($6.25 billion) Nabucco project has been conceived as a route to diversify energy resources to Europe, as the continent's gas demand is set to soar in coming years. Botas is positive about the participation of German firm RWE as the sixth shareholder in the Nabucco project.
"RWE is very eager to join Nabucco and we are very positive about their participation," Duzyol said. Turkish officials earlier said the country favoured RWE as the sixth partner rather than Gaz de France after France's National Assembly passed a bill making denial of Armenian genocide at the hands of Ottoman Turks a crime.
Turkey denies there was systematic genocide against Armenians during World War One. The sixth Nabucco partner to join a group of companies from Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey will not be chosen before the end of this month, Duzyol said.
One of the problems that had slowed the new partner's selection has been a post-election reshuffling on the Botas board. "There is still political support and there is support for a sixth shareholder, but we have not had a third board member since July," said Duzyol. He did not say when the third member was to be selected.
The second tender for the sale of Turkey's natural gas distribution grids will take place after the remainder of the first tender is finalised but will not happen before the end of this year, Duzyol said.
The first tender sold off 16 lots of the infrastructure to Royal Dutch Shell and Bosphorus Gas, which is partly owned by Gazprom. A remaining 12 lots to be finalised in the tender are expected to be transferred to Turkish firms Enerco and Avrasya.
Turkey is selling off its domestic distribution infrastructure after a new law said Botas had to cut its ownership of gas contracts to below 20 percent of national consumption by the end of 2009.
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