WASHINGTON, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Turkmenistan's Foreign Ministry intends to request that the United Nations become involved in resolving Caspian offshore water territorial claims. The Foreign Ministry's press service said, "When it takes much time to discuss the status of the Caspian Sea and the delimitation of its water area and bottom we cannot wait for these issues to lead to mutual reproaches, disputes or conflicts. If the talks between the sides do not result in mutually advantageous decisions, we should have to appeal to international organizations, including the U.N." At the heart of Turkmenistan's concerns is its dispute with Azerbaijan over the development of the Serdar/Kyapaz deposit, which Azerbaijan has awarded to a Canadian company. The State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic states that the deposit belongs to Azerbaijan and that Baku intends to develop it. Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan will shortly hold talks on the demarcation of their neighboring Caspian sectors.
Bangladeshi Foreign Minister M. Morshed Khan doesn't think that the proposed tri-nation gas pipeline is likely to come up during bilateral meeting between Bangladeshi Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and Indian PM Manmohan Singh at the two-day 13th summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation in Dhaka, which begins on Feb. 6., commenting, "I don't think that it has reached that stage." Earlier in January, the energy ministers of Bangladesh, India and Myanmar had a meeting on the proposed project in Yangon, agreeing in principle to have the trans-border natural gas pipeline for exporting gas from Myanmar to India transiting Bangladesh. Khan said improving the economic relations between Bangladesh and India on an equitable basis might figure "prominently" in the Khaleda-Manmohan bilateral talks in Dhaka, adding that Bangladesh's prime minister would also seize the opportunity of holding bilateral meetings with all the SAARC Heads of State and Government on the sidelines of the summit.
Canada's Brascan Power Corp. is expanding its U.S. presence, spending $42 million to purchase two hydroelectric stations in Pennsylvania and Maryland. The two facilities generate a total of 48 megawatts. Brascan Power Chief Executive Officer Harry Goldgut said that the purchase from Reliant Energy Inc. "marks our entry into the Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland electricity market, which is adjacent to and interconnected with New York, a market in which we currently operate. Strategically, this acquisition also furthers our objective of geographic diversification and at the same time extends our market penetration in the northeast." The power division of Brascan Corp. has 120 power plants generating 2,600 megawatts. Brascan Corp.'s new purchases are the 28-megawatt Piney station on the Clarion River in Pennsylvania and the 20-megawatt Deep Creek station on the Youghiogheny River in Maryland.
Head of Malaysia's Petronas Petroleum Co. Asian operations Zain Sabri, leading a four-member delegation, called on Pakistan's Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Amanullah Khan Jadoon and informed him that Petronas will increase production from its Rehmat Field in Sindh to 2.2 million cubic yards per day gas by March 15. After Petronas Petroleum Co. successfully drills two wells in Ghotki, Khairpur and Sukkur districts in Sindh province the company intends to drill another well in Mehar Block by next year. Sabri told Jadoon about Petronas' interest in obtaining more blocks for oil and gas exploration in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province ((NWFP)..) Sabri also invited Jadoon to attend the international oil and gas conference being held in Malaysia in June organized by the Petronas.
Pakistan's Senate standing committee on petroleum and natural resources has underlined the need for extensive exploration of oil and gas reserves and directed the Oil and Gas Development Company Ltd. (OGDCL) to accelerate its exploration program throughout the country. There was a general consensus that there was wide potential to explore new sources of energy in the country and that offshore exploration should also be investigated. The committee was informed that OGDCL competes equally with all other local and foreign companies operating in the country and receives no preferential treatment. OGDCL has $457.4 million in cash reserves. OGDCL recently received four exploration licenses for Kohlu, Kalchas, Bagh and Shahana.
Russia's Primorsk Shipping Co. has commissioned three 100,000-ton Aframax tankers from Hyundai Heavy Industries. The keels of the three tankers were laid down on Jan. 27. The Aframax tankers will be deployed for oil transportation. Primorsk Shipping Co. intends to take delivery of the tankers by the end of 2005, with the first ship of the project scheduled for delivery in October.
Closing oil prices, January 27, 3 p.m. London
Brent crude oil: $46.95
West Texas intermediate crude oil: $48.00
