Azerbaijani Minister: Turkish Pipeline Both Profitable and Practical

The construction of a pipeline between Turkey and Azerbaijan would be both financially and technically advantageous, the Azerbaijani Minister for Foreign Affairs has said.

Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, Elmar Mammadyarov said that the pipeline would be a good idea from a technical and financial standpoint. 

"Technically it is possible and from the financial point of view is also one of the good ideas - not spending a lot of money," he said.

The pipeline, which would transport gas from Turkey to Greece and Bulgaria, would then split "like a Christmas tree", the minister said, bringing Azeri gas to the rest of the EU.

On Tuesday, an Azeri energy official said that a deal on the construction of the Trans-Anatolian pipeline would be completed by January.

The pipeline will be constructed between Turkey and the Azeri state-run State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) to transport gas from the BP-controlled Shah Deniz field in Azerbaijan to the rest of Europe.