Shorouk Express
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 2. Romania hopes for
future talks on gas supply from Azerbaijan, Pavel-Casian Nitulescu,
State Secretary of Romanian Energy Ministry, said in an exclusive
interview with Trend on the occasion of the Baku Energy Week to be
held June 2-4.
“As it is my first attendance in Baku Energy Forum, I am
grateful to represent Romania this year in such a renowned event.
My message towards the regional energy leaders highlights the
importance of regional cooperation through strategic infrastructure
projects which add to our joint energy security and allow for
unhindered flow of energy.
In my opinion, I strongly believe that adequate infrastructure
and proper investment are needed to support the safety of our
region! To this end, Romania is involved in regional initiatives –
such as the Vertical Corridor project and the so-called “Green
Corridor”. They represent relevant initiatives that open the
perspectives to alternative sources of gas or renewable energy as
it is the case with the submarine cable that will link the green
resources of Azerbaijan to Georgia, Romania, and Hungary,” he
said.
Nitulescu stressed Romania’s continued support for the energy
security of the region and his country’s openness for continuing
fruitful and loyal cooperation in the energy sector with its
neighbors as reliable partners.
“Romania and Azerbaijan have a long-lasting relation and, over
the years, we have significantly deepened our cooperation in the
natural gas filed. I believe that future negotiations for certain
Azerbaijani gas volumes to be supplied to the Romanian market will
be carried out by the interested companies of the two
countries.
For Romania, gas represents a strategic resource and will remain
in our energy mix for the years to come, adding its share to a
flexible energy system. We have a low dependence on natural gas
imports, being in a favorable situation, as consumption is mostly
ensured by domestic natural gas production,” he added.
Expansion of the Southern Gas Corridor
Future discussions should be held on expansion of the Southern
Gas Corridor, Pavel-Casian Nitulescu said.
“We could not stress more the importance of the Southern Gas
Corridor as an alternative gas source for the region. The plans to
expand the Southern Gas Corridor are of strategic importance for
Romania, as new gas suppliers are needed, especially for the Balkan
and South-Eastern European countries. In our view, this could be
achieved only by adequate funding in order to put into place the
necessary and appropriate infrastructure, as well as for
identifying new gas supply sources. For this reason, I believe that
future discussions should be held in this framework,” he said.
Nitulescu pointed out that in the South-Eastern and Central
European region, Romania has been involved in the development of
strategic gas transport infrastructure projects such as the BRUA
gas pipeline, the Iași-Ungheni-Chișinău gas pipeline to the
Republic of Moldova and functional interconnections with
neighboring states and supports, as well, the Trans-Balkan
Corridor, which aims to increase energy security in the region.
“I want to highlight that with a production horizon in 2027,
developing the Neptun Deep field in the Black Sea, will have a
positive impact on the energy market of our country, but also at
regional level. Neptun Deep is a project that will strengthen
Romania’s role as an energy player in the region, with Romania
becoming the largest producer of natural gas in the European
Union,” added the state secretary.
New horizons of cooperation with SOCAR
The state secretary pointed out that Romania is open for future
propositions by Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR.
He noted that SOCAR is an important company on the Romanian
fuels market.
“SOCAR investments in Romania have considerable strategic,
economic and social importance. They have allowed the
diversification of companies on the Romanian market, contributing
to our energy security,” said the state secretary.
Moreover, Nitulescu pointed out that SOCAR contributed to the
creation of several hundreds of jobs, whereas investments in gas
stations and infrastructure brought regional economic
development.
“Therefore, I totally agree that the expansion of SOCAR’s
presence in Romania signals that our country is an attractive
destination for investments and would be very glad to hear about
SOCAR’s future propositions,” he added.
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