Baku and Ankara agree on some gas terms

BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- Baku and Ankara have agreed on the price of gas from the first phase of the Shah Deniz gas field, though further talks are needed, energy officials said.

Ankara has sought to allay concerns from the Azeri government regarding the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. Meanwhile, both sides have sat idle on the transit terms and revenues for natural gas heading to Europe across Turkey.

Rovnag Abdullayev, the head of the State Oil Co. of Azerbaijan Republic, said both sides have made headway on talks regarding gas from the first phase of the Shah Deniz field, the Trend news agency reports.

"We have agreed upon questions concerning the gas price in the first stage," he said. "The question the gas price in the second stage has not yet agreed upon."

Ankara had complained that the current price it pays for Azeri gas is unfair.

Both countries are positioning themselves as major players in the regional energy sector. Azerbaijan sits on some of the largest natural gas deposits in the world, with roughly 30 trillion cubic feet of reserves on hand. Turkey, meanwhile, is set to host Russia's South Stream gas pipeline and Europe's Nabucco pipeline, which could rely on Azeri gas.