Forbes: Pipeline Poker: Azeri Aces

Cards are finally being put on the Southern Corridor pipeline table, and it’s increasingly clear that everyone concerned is trying to line up the same ‘five card trick’: Vertical integration across the value chain from ‘Caspian well-heads’ to ‘European homes’. As desirable as that is for the Shah Deniz II players, they need to remember the cardinal rules of the gas game: The ultimate resource holder, in this case Azerbaijan, always holds the aces. Play your hand wisely, or watch your entire house eventually cave in.  MORE