Flying the flag: for Turkey
Turkey plans Ceyhan energy hub
Turkey has outlined plans for a $10 billion project to turn Ceyhan into a regional energy hub.
The proposal would see an LNG terminal, oil refinery and a petrochemicals plant built at the port of Ceyhan on the Mediterranean coast, an energy official told Reuters.
Ankara's plan would lessen crowding in the narrow, congested Bosphorus straits and the passage through Istanbul, the only outlet for Russian and Caspian oil output.
Ceyhan is already the terminus of a 1.5 million barrels per day pipeline and a terminal for Iraqi crude. The Baku-Tblisi-Ceyhan line, which will handle 1 million bpd, will come on stream early next year.
The terms of the project will be announced by the end of the year, the energy official said.
"The government has started talks with leading international energy companies to build the project," said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"A total investment value of $10 billion has been calculated for the three plants," he said.
The plan is likely to be discussed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan when they inaugurate a gas pipeline from Russia in the Black Sea town of Samsun on 17 November, he said.
On Wednesday, Italy's Eni said it was teaming up with Turkish company Calik to evaluate an oil pipeline linking Samsun to Ceyhan to carry "over 1 million bpd".
But Russia has so far favoured a line that will link the Black Sea to the Aegean through Bulgaria and Greece.
"A total of nearly4 million bpd will converge at Ceyhan from Iraq, the Caspian, as well as Russia through the proposed Samsun-Ceyhan line," the official said, adding the Samsun-Ceyhan line might carry 1.4 million bpd.
Russian and Italian players expressed interest in the Ceyhan project, the official said without naming any company.
Turkish energy officials said earlier this week Russia also wanted to take part in a project by Turkey's gas and oil pipeline concern Botas to build a gas storage facility under the Tuz Golu (Salt Lake), near the capital Ankara.
"The three leaders will also discuss some other projects that are of interest to their countries," said the official, without giving further details.