U.S. Places Large Bet On Pipeline

[chlamor]

U.S. places large bet on pipeline

by Candace Rondeaux

NEW YORK - American-backed plans to build a nearly 1,100-mile-long oil pipeline from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean are about to go from what skeptics once called a "pipe dream" to a reality. Trailing from Baku, Azerbaijan, through Georgia to the Turkish seaport of Ceyhan, British energy giant BP will bring the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline on line this month. One of the longest oil routes in the world, it's expected to pump 1 million barrels of oil a day by 2010.

With oil prices skyrocketing, the hope is the pipeline will bring consumers in the West a steady flow of oil while avoiding the usual risks. No shaky Middle East regimes to deal with. No tricky negotiations with unfriendly OPEC nations. Instead, the theory goes, oil would flow smoothly through the rugged deserts and steep mountainsides of cash-starved former Soviet republics. Along the way, the $3.6 billion project would bring foreign investment and much-needed economic development to the region.

<snip>

Plus, Aliriza said, there might not be enough oil in the BTC pipeline to make it economical. When the Clinton administration first pitched its ambitious plan to transport Caspian Sea oil to the West in 1994, the landlocked body of water in Russia's back yard was hailed as the "new Persian Gulf." Some estimated that the Caspian area could hold as much as 233 billion barrels of oil, a close runnerup to Saudi Arabia - eight times the estimated 29 billion barrels of proven oil reserves in the United States.

Much of the exuberance of those years has dissipated; now the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates the Caspian Sea could hold from 17 billion to 33 billion barrels of proven oil reserves. By 2010, analysts expect the countries in the region to produce from 2.4 million to 5.9 million barrels per day, rivaling South America's largest oil producer, Venezuela. But several Western oil companies have recently pulled out of exploration in parts of the Caspian as wells have come up dry.

http://www.sbsun.com/Stories/0,1413,208~12588~2870294,00.html

[Mountainman]

1. For some reason I doubt that this will help folks like me drive to work

more cheaply. In 2010 I'll be almost retired anyway. I think that spending the money to find ways of making us less dependent on fossil fuels is the way to go but that doesn't make Bush oil buddies any richer. If conservation put money in the pockets of rick repubs we would all be driving around on water or something else easy to get.

[dbeach]

2. caspian sea worth 10 trillion and more

after the gas prices get spiked for the Nth time.

Karl B. Schwarz has been focusing on this and tying it to 9/11.
His book 'One way ticket to crawford ' has references to many major wall st. firms ..oil barons and pols..all with extreme attention to detail and easily checked sources.

Amazing how the Taliban had a great deal going with the bridas co. from Argentia on before 9/11..then suddenly..US and Euro oil companies are in Afghansitan..

BUT hey its about bringing democracy to these foks..ya know liberatin em...

Caspian sea is a big motive in a still bigger crime..all will eventually be paid for by the US Taxpayer...who will NEVER share a nickel of the profits.

bushness as usual for the First Criminal Family..

[UpInArms]

3. more info on that pipeline

http://www.rferl.org/features/2002/09/18092002154755.asp

Caspian: Presidents Launch Construction Of Oil Pipeline

By Michael Lelyveld

Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey are marking the start of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil-pipeline project today after years of planning and political controversy. But the westward oil route from the Caspian Sea has gained commercial support over the years and lost some of the causes of conflict that made it a major regional issue between Russia and the United States.

Boston, 18 September 2002 (RFE/RL) -- After eight years of debate, the presidents of Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey are set to launch construction of a Caspian pipeline later today, beginning a project that may tie their countries together for decades to come.

At a ceremony near Baku, Presidents Heidar Aliev, Eduard Shevardnadze, and Ahmet Necdet Sezer will lay the foundation for the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, which has become known as BTC. The 1,760-kilometer link from the Caspian to the Mediterranean has been a regional goal since Azerbaijan signed its first offshore contract in September 1994. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham will represent the United States, which has been a primary source of political support.

Aside from the ceremony, the event will mark an enormous commitment to the Caspian plan. In addition to the $2.9 billion cost for building the pipeline by 2005, a consortium led by Britain's BP oil company will pledge investments of $5.2 billion in the next stage of developing Azerbaijan's resources to fill the line with 1 million barrels of oil per day.

As the first major pipeline in a Western-backed transport corridor through the Caucasus, the BTC plan has already produced countless arguments and political calculations. But the benefits for the three countries on the route have remained largely unchanged.

...more...

[stillcool]

4. Hey there...perhaps you or someone could....

explain to me what the map below designates. Have all these oil companies negotiated drilling rights?

[chlamor]

5. For a thorough treatment on this go here:

Caspian Basin Alert. Pipeline Politics. By Nik Novak and Eric Halvorson ...
There are four main proposed pipeline routes from the Caspian Basin region--each ...
www.uwec.edu/grossmzc/caspianpipes.html - 32k - Cached - Similar pages

http://www.uwec.edu/grossmzc/caspiancorps.html

[hadrons]

6. isn't Caspian Sea oil high in sulfur???