Iraqi Gas May Not Flow Thru to Nabucco

Though Iraq could export surplus natural gas to European markets, it isn't committed to doing so through the Nabucco pipeline, according to Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Hussein al-Shahristani.

The consortium managing plans for the Nabucco natural gas pipeline said in October that it considered engineering work for feeder lines from Georgia and Iraq to connect to the main artery in Turkey.

Speaking at an energy summit in Paris, al-Shahristani said that Baghdad was committed to exporting any surplus gas in the immediate future.

"We have an agreement with the European Union where Iraq is going to supply the EU with some gas, not necessarily from Nabucco," he was quoted by the Platts news service as saying. "Iraq is not committed to that project."

The planned Nabucco pipeline would stretch from Turkey to Austria, crossing Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary, though the project has been slow to attract formal supply commitments.

Iraq flares most of the natural gas because it doesn't have the capacity to utilize associated gas in oil deposits. Shahristani, the former oil minister, said Iraq may consider potential liquefied natural gas deliveries to Asian markets as part of a broader export strategy.

Source: UPI