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Ankara pushes on despite Cyprus E&P row



By Upstream staff 

Turkey said today its state-run oil player TPAO could issue tenders for international partners to search for oil in the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas despite a row with Cyprus over exploration in the region.

The two countries, hostile neighbours since a Turkish invasion in 1974 triggered by a brief Greek-inspired coup, are already at odds over Cyprus's offshore exploration plans.

The island, run by an internationally-recognised Greek Cypriot government, is set to open tenders for offshore licensing agreements on Thursday, having signed accords defining its continental shelf with Egypt and Lebanon.

Asked whether there would be problems if the respective exploration work overlapped, Turkish Energy Minister Hilmi Guler told Reuters this would depend on the stance of the two sides.

"We in Turkey want to carry out our planned work as normal. We do not do this work to fit in with the attitudes of others," he said, adding the planned tenders should not be seen as a reaction to Greek Cypriot exploration plans.

"We are not adopting these tactics in response to any country or incident. If necessary we will hold talks if there is a dispute over fields. Ultimately this is a technical subject and diplomacy is one of the ways it can be resolved," he said.

Guler said foreign countries and companies would be invited to take part in the tenders as the work would involve activities outside TPAO's areas of expertise.

Earlier this month, Cyprus likened Turkey's behaviour in the oil exploration row to that of a pirate after Ankara urged countries in the east Mediterranean to avoid bilateral energy exploration agreements with Greek Cypriots.

It said such deals could hamper efforts to settle the island's decades-old partition.

Studies have suggested the seas around Cyprus could contain reserves of between 6 billion and 8 billion barrels of crude.

Turkish Cypriots, backed by Ankara, run a breakaway state in the northern part of the island and fear Greek Cypriots could claim all potential benefits from the reserves for themselves.


Tuesday, 13 February, 2007, 17:21 GMT  | last updated: Tuesday, 13 February, 2007, 17:21 GMT

Tender move: TPAO will call for tenders for offshore exploration despite a row with Cyprus over the move
 

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