Turkey-Israel Pipeline to India???

TURKEY : What's the purpose of the multipurpose pipeline?
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Link to original story
SERKAN DEMİRTAŞ/Analysis
ANKARA – Turkish Daily News


The idea of linking Turkey to Israel via a multipurpose pipeline would be of great importance to the whole Middle East, not only for its contribution to stability and prosperity, but also creating strong interdependence among neighbors to aid future cooperation.

The pipeline would carry water, natural gas, electricity and oil through the region.

The only obstruction to the project is the Turkish government's way of doing business. “The government openly favors and backs the alık Group for the realization of this project,” an official familiar with the process told the Turkish Daily News on condition of anonymity.

“It seems that the project is being developed just for this group and closed to the rest,” the official stated. “The project could still be realized but this sort of business will surely cast a shadow on it.”

Although both the group and the government deny their relations, the recruitment of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's 26-year old son-in-law into the alık group as a senior executive exposed links between the two. The purchase of the Sabah-atv media group by the alık group, thanks to credit given by two major state banks, strengthened these suspicions.



The evolution of the project

Linking Turkey to Israel via a pipeline crossing the Mediterranean is not a very old project. It came to the agenda when Turkey suggested Russia build a Samsun-Ceyhan bypass oil pipeline to ease the oil tanker traffic through the Turkish straits in the early 2000's. Among other disagreements with Moscow on energy diplomacy, both in the Caucasus and Black Sea regions, Ankara still awaits a positive response from the world's main oil and natural gas producer. Another reason why Russians were reluctant in cooperating with Turkey to let their oil flow from this pipeline was the government's choice of giving the project to the alık Group without tender.

After intense talks with Russia, Italy, Israel and India, a new project came to the table that would convince the Russians as well. This project – estimated to cost around $4 billion – is considered an extension of the Samsun-Ceyhan pipeline project and if realized, will pump oil from Ceyhan to Israel's 254-kilometer Ashkelon-Eilat pipeline, also known as the Trans-Israel pipeline or “Tipline,” and from there to a Red Sea port via the existing pipeline network to reach its final destination, India.

Not to mention the main contractor of the project is again the alık Group, but this time with international partners such as Italy's ENI, Russia's Gazprom, India's Indian Oil Company and although unconfirmed, it is thought, world giant Shell.


Official announcement soon

While the alık Group is continuing its efforts to find funds from international credit institutions, the relevant governments are holding talks to create the necessary political platform. The undersecretaries of the energy ministries of Turkey, Israel and India came together on Thursday to discuss construction of the project.

In the next phase, a tripartite meeting at ministerial level will take place, according to officials. “A letter of intent, expressing the will of the three countries, could be signed during that meeting,” officials stated. This move would also help the alık Group in concluding its efforts to find necessary the international attention for the project.

However, these developments do not hide the uneasiness of the related parties with the methodology of the Turkish government in choosing the alık Group as the sole contractor. Russia has not yet confirmed that it will flow its oil through the Samsun-Ceyhan pipeline. This is the key development needed for the realization of the whole project.

Israel, on the other hand, seems unhappy with this methodology, as well. The Israeli Minister for Energy and Infrastructure Benjamin Eliezer hesitated to meet with Ahmet alık, CEO of the alık Group, during his recent meeting in Ankara late July. However, he could find the chance to introduce himself to Eliezer during a working luncheon, thanks to Justice and Development Party, or AKP, members.

“The project is in the interests of all countries, oil and natural gas sellers, buyers and transit countries. It is of course a matter the business and private sectors will be involved in too. But the process should be more transparent,” officials noted.

I am little surprised to see this newsitem , posted on a blog and then followed the link to the Turkish Daily News where it appeared.
Interestingly it mentions that TIPLINE ( Trans Israel Pipeline from Russia via Turkey) will bring GAS and OIL to India and may also carry water and electricity through the region it passes.

I know India has long interest in Russian oil but problems of transportation never facilitated buying from them. Hence our Refineries are currently not suited to Russian crude. A barter agreement was thought of where India can buy Russian crude and sell that in exchange for Iranian or Sudanese crude(Iraq being out of question for the time being , remember Nutwar singh and his son Jagat singh burnt their fingures badly in this). This also never thought as feasible.

So this pipeline news came as a surprise for two reason. First one is as mentioned above. Second one is How it gels with IPP(Iran Pakistan India Pipeline) and association with Israel may not be seen in favourable light with some countries in Gulf Region which is our main source of Crude.

But more so, nobody in India seems to know about this pipeline and no newspaper has reported it especially when Indian Oil Company (Don't know if reference is to IOC) is stated to be involved and with India as ultimate destination.


I just thought it interesting to bring it to knowledge of members.

pk