In potentially ominous news, Gazprom has entered an agreement with Azeri national energy company SOCAR to purchase Azeri gas at a price of $350/thousand cubic meters. Initial volumes of 500 mcm for 2010 are modest, but Gazprom is allegedly to be a preferential buyer (whatever that means) for gas from the second stage of the immense Shan Deniz field.
The price in the deal is very interesting, given that Gazprom (OGZPY.PK) is balking at paying the same price from Turkmenistan (admittedly the Azeri gas is closer to market, and should receive something of a premium). Indeed, recent reports tend to confirm my initial conclusion that the gas pipeline “explosion” in Turkmenistan was just a consequence of the Russian reneging on its contract to buy gas at $345 from the Turkmen, a price that seemed like a good deal at the time, but which looks very rich given the current market:
Gazprom wants Ashgabat to reduce either the price or the volume of Turkmen gas delivered to Russia; or some combination of the two reductions. In either case, Turkmenistan’s national income (based almost entirely on gas exports) would be severely hit.
Russia’s prolonged stoppage puts Ashgabat under growing pressure to re-negotiate the existing agreements. High-level Russian delegations have been descending on Ashgabat almost on a weekly basis recently. During June, for example, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister and concurrently Gazprom Chairman Viktor Zubkov, Gazprom CEO Aleksei Miller, and the company’s vice-president and Gazexport Director-General Aleksandr Medvedev, held talks one after the other in Ashgabat with President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov and other Turkmen officials (Interfax, June 3, 14, 19, 21, 24).
Moscow apparently feels that it has the upper hand and can continue the import stoppage as long as necessary. On the occasion of Gazprom shareholders’ annual meeting, just held in Moscow, Medvedev simply recommended to “wait and
