Turkish president approves Azerbaijan-Türkiye natural gas cooperation agreement

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an has officially approved the Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Natural Gas between the governments of Türkiye and Azerbaijan, Azernews reports, citing the decision published in the Resmi Gazete.

Originally signed in Istanbul on May 14, 2024, and approved by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on July 8 of the same year, the agreement lays the foundation for expanded cooperation in the purchase, sale, transit, and exchange of natural gas between the two countries.

The agreement outlines that in addition to existing gas deliveries from Azerbaijan to Türkiye and third countries via Türkiye, at least 40% of the total volume of gas will be offered to Turkish energy company BOTA? under the same commercial terms as the 2011 agreement between Azerbaijan Gas Supply Company and BOTA?. This mechanism is referred to as the “40-60 principle.”

Key cooperation areas specified in the agreement between Azerbaijan’s SOCAR and Türkiye’s BOTA? include:

• Türkgözü-Malkoçlar Exchange: Delivery and redelivery of gas between specified entry and exit points.

• Sequential Purchase: Gas supply from the Shah Deniz project to SOCAR’s subsidiaries in Türkiye.

• Transit of Turkmen Gas: Delivery of Turkmen gas to Türkiye via Iran, Azerbaijan, and/or Georgia.

• Supply to Nakhchivan: Gas deliveries via the I?d?r-Nakhchivan pipeline.

• Exit Points Expansion: Upgrading the Malkoçlar and Kipi gas delivery points.

• TANAP and SCP Expansion: Enhancing the capacity of the Trans-Anatolian and South Caucasus pipelines.

• Gas Supply After Agreement Expiry: Continuation of gas deliveries post-2021 agreement expiration.

The full text of the Agreement is available here: https://e-qanun.az/framework/57258.