Eric Watkins
Oil Diplomacy Editor
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 13 -- Russia's state-owned OAO Gazprom, Qatar Liquefied Gas Co. Ltd., and National Iranian Oil Co. plan to establish a joint venture to produce gas from Iran's South Pars field and liquefy it at Qatar's Ras Laffan.
Each founder will get 30% in the project and the remaining 10% will go to the trader, probably to China's CNPC or Korean Kogas, according to a report in Moscow's Kommersant newspaper.
Participation by Qatar—a key US ally in the region—will level political risks triggered by the sales of Iranian gas, experts told the paper.
The plans are to set up the gas production infrastructure in South Pars, lay a pipeline across the Persian Gulf to Qatar, and construct an LNG facility at Ras Laffan.
The Kommersant report came as a Russian delegation led by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin arrived in Doha, Qatar, for talks with Qatari and Iranian officials on cooperation in natural gas exports.
Ahead of the meeting, Putin sought to allay the fears of gas consumers who viewed a meeting in Tehran last month as the start of a process that would eventually lead to the formation of an OPEC-like group of natural gas exporters.
At the time, Alexey Miller, chairman of OAO Gazprom's management committee, said their discussions "may contribute greatly to developing the agenda for the Gas Exporting Countries Forum…," which could be rapidly transformed "into a permanent organization promoting steady and reliable fuel supplies around the globe (OGJ Online, Oct. 24, 2008)."
Following the announcement, the European Union—Russia's biggest gas customer—warned it could reconsider its energy policy if Russia, Iran, and Qatar formed a "gas OPEC."
Putin said Nov. 11 that there were "absolutely no grounds for such fears," adding, "We are not establishing a cartel; we are not striking any cartel deals."
Putin said, "Energy producers, as well as consumers, have the right to—and in my view must—coordinate their decisions, exchange information, and do their best to ensure uninterrupted hydrocarbon supplies on global markets."
Contact Eric Watkins at [email protected].
