Malta and Azerbaijan to cooperate on energy
Two agreements for energy cooperation were signed between Malta and Azerbaijan in Baku during an official visit by Maltese Prime Minister Mr Joseph Muscat on Monday.
Azerbaijan and Malta reached a new level of cooperation in the energy sector by undersigning documents on cooperation in the oil and gas sector, official press in Azerbaijan said.
Maltese Energy and Health Minister Konrad Mizzi signed two memorandums of understanding on strategic cooperation in the oil and gas sector with his Azerbaijani counterpart Natig Aliyev and state-run oil company (SOCAR) president Rovnag Abdullayev.
The signing was witnessed by PM Muscat and Azerbaijani Prime Minister Artur Rasi-zade.
The Maltese government said both sides recognized the transformation occurring in the Maltese energy sector and the creation of new regional opportunities which could be serviced from Malta.
The main areas of the strategic cooperation will focus on oil and gas exploration, sourcing and logistics of petroleum products, trading in energy commodities in Mediterranean, development of new regional infrastructure and innovative LNG services.
PM Muscat said that Azerbaijan is turning into an important trade partner for Malta and that two new agreements “create good conditions for expanding the cooperation.”
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who received the delegation earlier, said this visit as well as SOCAR’s participation in an energy project in Malta created a good opportunity for defining prospects of the bilateral ties. “Economic relations with Malta would contribute to the regional cooperation,” he added.
PM Muscat said Malta aims to open up more opportunities in the Mediterranean as it can serve as a bridge between Africa and Europe. Malta also supports wider cooperation between the EU and Azerbaijan.
SOCAR’s subsidiary SOCAR Trading SA is a part of the multinational consortium ElectroGas for set up a new LNG-to-power project in Malta.
The other partners are Germany’s Siemens, UK-based Gasol and local investor group GEM Holdings.
The total cost to ElectroGas to develop the project in the coming 24 months is expected to be around €470 million.
The project’s start-up schedule, however, appears to have slipped back from September 2015 to March 2016.
The project proposes a 18-year gas sales period and a 18-year power purchase agreement. The floating storage unit will be provided by SOCAR, which will also have the exclusive right to supply LNG for the project.
The Socar sources said to NaturalGas Europe on condition of anonymity that “Socar Trading will supply LNG for Maltese project from the third sources not from Azerbaijan, more likely from Africa”.
“Azerbaijan is a landlocked nation and it does not has any LNG facilities in country or overseas, for example in Turkey. Moreover, future gas supply from Shah Deniz-2 field to Europe has limited by 10 bcm a year. All this amount has been covered by sales-pushed accords to 9 European buyers”, the sources said.
BP-led Shah Deniz consortium signed 25-year deals with Enel SpA (ENEL), EON SE, GDF Suez SA (GSZ), Axpo Trading AG, Bulgargaz EAD, Depa, Gas Natural Fenosa, Hera Trading Srl and Shell Energy Europe September,2013.