U.A.E. in Turkmenistan for oil talks

ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- Officials from the United Arab Emirates attended a high-level meeting in Turkmenistan to discuss bolstering ties in the energy sector.

U.A.E. Economic Minister H.E. Sultan bin Saeed al-Mansouri met with Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov to discuss developments of the U.A.E.'s Dragon Oil in the Caspian Sea, the Trend news agency said Thursday.

Dragon Oil has planned investments of $600 million under a 10-year package.

Beyond energy, the U.A.E. delegation visited tourist facilities along the Caspian shore and discussed plans to increase the number of flights between each country.

Turkmenistan boasts around 546 million barrels in proven reserves. Undeveloped offshore fields could bring that total to around 1.7 billion barrels, however.

The U.A.E. is one of the Top 10 trade partners with Turkmenistan.